Mike and Nicole met on the Bumble. For the older generation, that’s a dating app where the woman starts the conversation. Nicole was intrigued by Mike's adorable pictures and desire to “find someone to share the chair lift, trail, and tent with.” Mike liked that Nicole was looking for “someone who wants to go on a big outdoor adventure, then come home and eat mac and cheese in sweatpants.” They had their first date at the Mayor of Old Town on Thursday, April 13th, 2017. Mike went on a mountain bike ride after work, showing up just in time to put on sandals and a clean T-shirt as Nicole rolled up on her bike. The couple talked about growing up in the Midwest, international travel, Ann Arbor's geographic location including Nicole phoning a friend (thanks, Paige!), and the likelihood of dating Aaron Rodgers. Nicole was instantly smitten and texted her best friend, “I think I met my soulmate!” Mike, beneath a firm exterior, was pretty excited, too. Our heroes dated in person for six weeks before they were out of town for the following seven weeks in a row. After committing to stay in touch even though it had only been a little over a month of dating, they both made good on their plan. Upon returning to Fort Collins, they met up for a secret date planned by Mike that involved breakfast, bikes, paddle boarding, and a bonus stop at a brewery. They haven't looked back. Mike and Nicole's love grew as quickly as a fast-moving Colorado storm on a sunny summer day. When our heroes are not out biking, hiking, and camping, they can be found tending to their garden, reading books on the couch together, watching documentaries, baking bread, and trying out new IPA's (bonus for dinosaurs or astronauts on the can).

Mike and Nicole got to travel to Germany for Christmas 2019! Mike lived there for two years and was excited to show Nicole around. He filled her in on the important things -- pretzels, schnitzel, Käsespätzle, Handbrot, and gluhwein. Nicole was immediately at home surrounded by beer, mulled wine, and cheesy carbs. Our heroes agreed to limit the number of souvenir mugs and glasses since they had to fly home at the end of the trip. Within seven hours of arriving in Cologne they had no less than nine glasses deemed impossible to pass up. After Cologne was the town of Gengenbach in the Black Forest. On Christmas Day, Mike had a Harry Potter ring in his pocket and planned to propose. They took a train through a picturesque valley to the highest waterfall in Germany. Our heroes arrived in the rain to discover the waterfall was a kitschy tourist trap, complete with a laser light show and loud Euro dance remix of Evanescence’s “Wake me up inside.” Mike decided it was no place to propose. The next day, December 26, the couple went to the adorable town of Hornberg. The day after Christmas is still a holiday in Germany and the town was quiet. They found a little bar and then walked up the hill to see the castle and valley below. While sitting on a bench overlooking the valley, Mike slipped Nicole a small card with a quote from Harry Potter and the words, “Will you marry me?” When Nicole looked over, Mike was down on one knee! He said the question out loud and she said yes! The rest of the trip included biking through the Black Forest, eating a top five schnitzel at a restaurant in the middle of the woods, having a German (read: nude) spa experience, and getting an upgrade to business class for the 10-hour flight home. It was truly a trip to remember! And now whenever they buy deli meat, Mike and Nicole have to get Black Forest ham.

Mike and Nicole want to say thank you to their parents and families for their amazing support. From flexibility with changing plans because of COVID, to meeting each other in person in Wisconsin, to supporting our big day - Mike and Nicole feel incredibly lucky to have such amazing families. They would not be here today without the love and hard work of these amazing and wonderful people.