Christina and Michael are so thankful you've stopped by their website! Their wedding story is a bit of an unconventional one, but it truly embodies their love and lifestyle! Christina and Michael met at 18 years old in their very first semester of college at Duke University, both taking a music course called "Composers of Influence." A small class of only 12 people, Michael always recalls: "I walked into the room on the second day of college, saw this stunning girl in the front row wearing her blue and yellow rugby shirt and immediately wondered 'who is that?!'" From that day forward they became fast friends, frequently seeing each other throughout their pre-med classes, before Duke basketball games (GTHC!), and at their respective Greek life events, but never formally dating one another. Christina is always quick to point out Michael's brief involvement with her roommate...! After college, Christina started her Physical Therapy studies at Duke, while Michael remained in Durham to work for Cisco Systems, putting off (interminably) medical school applications in favor of working in tech. In May of 2017, Christina reached out with a request that only Bichael could satisfy "Hey, I'm looking to buy a bike! Can you give me some advice?" Michael sent her the longest description you could possibly imagine of all the bits and pieces she'd need to look for in her first road bike, and then ultimately, decided to meet her at Durham Cycles to aid in the purchase. From there, they took her little Felt road bike on its inaugural journey down the American Tobacco Trail to Christina's little townhouse in Hope Valley, sampling her final batch of Cesarz Saison and playing with her dog Wiley. Michael even found out that his German Shepherd puppy, Talia, happened to be born that very same day! From that day forward, they spent nearly every day with one another, exploring all Durham had to offer for a pair of 22 year-olds. That was May of 2017, and after a move to Denver, back to Durham, and back to Denver again, Michael and Christina now live in Colorado permanently with both Talia and Wiley, but also their third dog (!!) Max, a Golden Retriever who Christina rescued from Alaska on her first big adventure of Travel PT. Michael's proposal came after a whirlwind August of 2021 - they bought their first house in a suburb outside of Denver, Michael and his Dad rode their 2 biggest bike races on back to back weekends, and then the gang travelled back to North Carolina to be with family and celebrate the Labor Day Holiday. On that long weekend, Michael managed to coerce Christina into a trip back to Duke's campus, all under the guise of "I need to go to the bookstore to buy more Duke gear..." Somehow, Christina didn't suspect a thing even though the bookstore was obviously closed for the holiday. After Alexi so graciously took a few normal photos in front of the Chapel, Michael popped the question! Although the "question" came out more like "Guess what, I have a secret, I have a secret." Thankfully, Christina still agreed to marry him! In favor of a more conventional wedding day, Michael and Christina actually opted to be married at the courthouse here in Denver this past fall, keeping the date they always wanted for their anniversary, HALLOWEEN! Subsequently, they have planned to celebrate with a small group of their friends this May out in Colorado, and are planning a small Duke Chapel ceremony in October of 2023. Christina and Michael want to say thank you to everyone who has supported and loved them throughout this whole unique process. They have appended a registry to this website, but want to emphasize that in no way is any contribution expected. It is simply a way for them to lay out all the cool things they plan to do in the coming months and years here in Colorado and beyond! Much Love, Michael and Christina