We’re getting married!

We met on a spring break serve trip to Portland. We both went into it only with the desire to share Jesus with the people of Portland, but we couldn't deny the connection between us. We bonded over cool music, a desire to love a lost world, and Portland vibes. I first noticed her innate capacity to be joyful and fun, her undivided devotion to Jesus, as well as her gorgeous eyes. Not knowing her at all before, she wore such a genuine heart on her sleeve and cared deeper than most people I have ever met. In developing this new, sweet friendship with her, it felt as if I was experiencing new sides of Jesus altogether. I was immediately crushing and dreaming of knowing her more.

I first noticed Alec’s great taste in music, generous heart, and his ability to connect deeply with people, making them feel so loved. I knew I liked him by the end of the week in Portland. He stood out from anyone else in my life. Alec quickly became one of my realest friends and favorite people. The more time I spent around him, the more I knew, I wanted to be a part of this guy’s story, and I wanted him to be a huge part of mine.

Makaila is so smart, so I really wanted to surprise her for this. We had previous conversations about engagement, and March was surrounding my mind...However, I really wanted her best friends who had moved to Montana to be a part of this day. So, me and her roommates schemed and came to the conclusion of me proposing at the end of Resonate Conference. This is a huge yearly conference where our church from all 12 sites comes together to worship, celebrate, and commission each other to say yes to Jesus. This way, all of Makaila's best friends would be together at the same time. Once ResCon concluded, Makaila, her two best friends Lilly and Kodie, and all her roommates had a girls day in Coeur d'Alene. They took her to a fun artsy coffee shop, they went out to breakfast, they went thrifting and plant shopping, and then around 2pm they took her on a hike called Tubb's hill. I wanted the first part of the day to be her and her girls because her friends mean so much to her. They walked her to the end of the hike, where I was waiting for her on a little beach spot on the lake. It was surreal and nerve-racking, but most of all I was so consumed with excitement to choose Makaila as the One for the rest of my life. I asked her to be my wife and praise God she said yes!! We took pictures with all of our friends, celebrated with many hugs, and then Makaila and I took our first stroll along the lake as an engaged couple. I took her to a fun restaurant on the lake where we got to dream about our life together. We finished the day in Ellensburg with a small party with our friends. The whole day felt like a dream that I never wanted to end! She later told me that she knew what was going on the whole weekend, but whatever, she still said yes ;)