How we met was such a God orchestrated event, because Kyle was giving up on finding love, and Sierra wasn't really looking. For some context, Kyle had just radically changed his appearance (for those who don't know his hair used to be very long), and Sierra at the same time just happened to be sick and couldn't do anything for a week straight. So naturally the answer to both of these new life circumstances was to make a Hinge profile. Us matching on Hinge was already a great glimpse into how we are as people and what our relationship would become. Kyle had mentioned anime on his profile, and Sierra was convinced he looked far too normal for him to actually be that nerdy. She messaged him fully intending to challenge him on it, and he responded with a very detailed, enthusiastic list that proved very much he knew what he was talking about. Needless to say she was impressed, and he had no idea till much later she was actually just trying to prove he wasn't really a nerd. What started as a few messages quickly turned into long scrolling paragraphs, the kind it takes nearly thirty minutes to write because you have to keep going back and forth to add new details and to remember what questions they actually asked. Almost immediately, for both of us, it felt like meeting a new best friend, the kind where conversation doesn’t drain you but somehow fills you with energy and you never want to conversation to end. On the Fourth of July, Sierra invited Kyle to her small group’s little get-together. (shout out Mikayla and Hunter!) There were board games, sparklers, and the early discovery that we are both extremely competitive. (ask Sierra about how Kyle lost a game of Spicy Uno) Fortunately, we survived game night, and we also got along surprisingly well. A few days later, on July 7, Kyle asked Sierra out on an official first date, and took her to the art museum. (Where a little over a year and a half later he eventually proposed) We arrived around 10 that morning and somehow stayed all day, talking, wandering through exhibits and trails, grabbing coffee, and deciding we weren’t done yet. That night turned into a movie, which turned into staying at the theater until 9 p.m. because we still had so much to talk about. From there, things unfolded quickly between us. We saw each other at church events, spent hours in conversation, and discovered that time together always went by too quickly. There was ice skating, which Kyle bravely endured and paid for physically. During that time we laughed together all the time, and from the first day we realized that what we had was unique and hard to find. It was like finally finding a home where you feel safe and secure. On July 14, 2024, we made it official. What began with trying to challenge Kyle's nerdiness became something secure, joyful, and transformative. Looking back, it feels less like a coincidence and more like grace, the quiet kind that shows up in ordinary days and becomes something extraordinary. We’re so grateful for God bringing us together, and for the people who have walked alongside us as we've grown in our relationship with each other. We can’t wait to celebrate the day our lives officially become one, surrounded by those who mean the most to us.