Kendia McNaughton 2023

Ken and I met on a dating app called Bumble and right off it was an instantaneous connection. My profile was very authentically me from a classic “India Selfie”, to a picture with Kita, and definitely one with my very large cat, Milo (inside joke 😉). I included some witty tidbits about myself and called it a day. Ken’s profile was so eye catching with a picture of him in a bright purple shirt and then pictures of him with Punk were enough to seal the deal but it was the quotes from Ron Swanson & Parks and Recreation that did it for me, I did not even hesitate on swiping right! Once we matched (which didn’t take long), I almost immediately sent the pick up line I was so ready to ask, “Who is your ultimate Parks and Rec crush?” I thought I had him pinned with Ron Swanson but he surprised me with the even better response of Duke Silver and I knew right then that this would be something special. We spent the next few days connecting on every facet of life before we could finally make it work to meet. Oh, did I forget to mention the tiny detail that we lived just about 100 miles apart from each other? I lived in Macon and Ken lived in Columbus but it wasn’t all that bad it turned out, because it ended up being the perfect drive for creating the playlist that became the soundtrack to that first year of our relationship and still something we build on to this day. Since Punk would be tagging along due to the drive, we (logically) decided to meet at my house the very first time we met. No such thing as strangers, am I right? But don’t worry my mom made sure to send my brother Noah over to ensure this wasn’t becoming another episode of Dateline (I wish I was kidding). All that to say, the first time Ken and I met we sat on the backporch, drank beer, and talked for 12 hours while our dogs ran around in the backyard, it was absolutely kismet. From there, our relationship has evolved into such a loving foundation for ourselves, each other, and our wee little babes, Collier and Garrison. To be able to celebrate our love with all of our close friends and family is such a privilege and we are beyond lucky to have such wonderful and amazing people in our lives.