John and Paige met the usual way, on Hinge. Well, it was the usual way in Washington, D.C., circa December 2020, when the city was mostly locked down. John’s first message to Paige was “I like your Australia dog.” (He still does). For their first date, John picked a DC classic: Casta's Rum Bar. He was ONLY 3 minutes late (which, Paige notes, is still late). But Paige waited, and everything after that worked out "okay." Even in the first month, it was clear that opposites were attracting. If you’ve met John and Paige, you know that their personalities and skill sets are complementary. Paige tends to be right and efficient—but don’t forget she’s right! John likes to spend more time deciding what “right” means in the first place (occupational hazard). Paige liked to cook, John liked to do dishes. Paige liked to get to the destination ASAP, John liked to have a little look at the history plaques on the side of the road. As we said, complementary. Two important things must be mentioned. One is a dog and one is a sport. Let’s start with the dog, Kira, who many of you have met. John has never met a dog he didn't like. Kira, on the other hand, is little pickier—especially with boys. Fortunately, there was no compatibility issues and Kira solidly understands that John is Dad. She arguably likes John more (Paige disagrees). Now for the sport. If you know Paige, you know that Paige loves frisbee. She has played since she joined her college team at Maryland in 2011. She’s pretty good, too! She has played at club nationals with her women's team "Washington, D.C. Grit" the last 4 seasons and has met some of her best friends in the world on that team. Look for them at the wedding! You’ll probably hear them first… John also played frisbee for his college team at William and Mary before deciding that frisbee should not be played year-round during one particularly cold and wet December tournament in Pittsburg. He hung up his cleats in 2014—not knowing it would only be a temporary hiatus. John has since found a (re)new(ed) love for frisbee and has plays during the summer too. After living together in West End, DC, from 2022-2023, John and Paige moved to Arlington. Arlington is John’s hometown, and Paige’s chosen hometown. They agreed that they were done with apartments because “Kira needed a yard.” No exceptions. Okay, okay, but how did we get here today? Right. So, John and Paige were settled in Arlington, Kira has a yard, and things are going smoothly. It was time to return West for some skiing time (with a ring). By then (Winter 2024-25), John and Paige had survived one of the greatest late-20s relationship killers: the skiing skill-gap. They could survive most of what the Colorado mountains had to offer (but no cliffs)! Breckenridge had become their favorite spot. Think cute little mining town at the foot of a 12,000-foot mountain range. Everyone who’s in the loop knows that Kira loves Breckenridge, so she had to come too. After a short 25-hour drive, the gang was there. Shoutout to ZOLA’s 4000-character limit! We encourage you to ask John or Paige about the engagement day story. Instead, for now, we have to let the photos speak for themselves. [She said yes]. Where are they today? In 2025, the house that Paige had affectionally labeled "Dream House" (two houses down the street from their rental) went up for sale. After intense negotiations and waiving every contingency in the books, Paige got Dream House. She now enjoys meeting her "weedable hour" requirement (don’t ask) and Kira enjoys chasing backyard bunnies. Both play frisbee in the summer and ski in the winter (and John promises to not have too many busy weeks at work)! Paige still prefers getting to places on time and John still likes slowing down a road trip to have a look at the signs, but they consider these differences a bonus, not a downside. In practice, they form a pretty cool unit and will continue challenging each other to listen, learn, and grow.