Our lives intertwined here and there, and everywhere in between, as they do in a town less than 3,000 people. We first have photo evidence of us together in swimming lessons at North Bend Municipal Pool, circa Summer 2000. As we ventured into elementary school, we found ourselves being placed in the same classroom year after year, after year, after year. From 1st through 8th grade we were friends, as one is with everyone in a class of 50 kids. Mark was the class clown, Madison more reserved and observant. As we graduated from middle school, our lives went separate ways, only reconnecting every once in awhile through mutual friends get togethers. Moving into our college years, we would meet for coffee in our hometown coffee cafe, if we both just so happen to be in town at the same time, (and based on message records, Madison was the one who prompted these meet ups). Having one of us finished college in Central Washington and the other working in the 'big' city of Portland, it wasn't until the world shut down in 2020 that we got back in touch. In April 2020, as Covid began to shut things down and social distancing grew common, we reconnected yet again and decided to go on a leisurely bike ride just outside of Bandon! At the reassurance of Madison, that it would 'only be 11 miles roundtrip', she wearing a true cycling spandex uniform, and he in true Mark form -- cotton pullover and denim with sneakers and a bike far too rusty and short to be ridden. Twenty-six miles later, one near mechanical breakdown, and an exhausted Mark, it was evident that opposites really do attract. It wasn't until a very welcoming 'Happy Thanksgiving!' text in November 2020 that we began daily conversations until an eventual 'first date' over the Christmas holiday weekend. It's not a true first date if you're not wearing wind breakers and rain boots mucking it through Blacklock Point -- and of course, stopping for Langlois Market hot dogs afterwards. From there we continued our whirlwind romance with long distance dating, meeting halfway every couple of weeks. Our lives zipped through 2021 as we welcomed sweet Merritt at the end of the year. Finding ourselves back in Coos County, we've settled into homeownership and parenthood more smoothly than we could have hoped. We didn't see ourselves reconnecting in this way in previous years, but something we were sure of early on in our relationship is that once we did, we would most likely be spending the rest of our lives together. <3