{Opening Credits} ACT 1, SCENE 1 HEB, aisle 7, condiments. (Short girl reaching for pickles) “UGH!“ (Tall guy walking by) “Allow me to demonstrate my value.” (Hands her the jar) (Short girl swoons) *swoon* (Tall guy) “I could reach things for you forever.” END SCENE JK. We met online. *shrug* Our first date was dinner at Liberty Kitchen.

October 19, 2019 It was game six of the ALCS. The Astros were battling it out against the Yankees in Minute Maid Park, one win away from the World Series… but we weren’t paying any attention. Nik was nervously fidgeting with a loose diamond ring in the tiny pocket of his jeans, while next to him Melissa was enjoying popsicle margaritas at the Rustic. We had spent the day at the batting cages, playing arcade games and picnicking in Discovery Green at “our spot”. Nik was waiting for the right moment, and proposed in the park under the stars. Apparently, we won the game.

As you all know, our original wedding date was November 14, 2020 but we postponed due to Covid. It wasn’t a difficult decision but it was incredibly disappointing. We decided we didn’t want to put our lives on hold for another year so we planned a wedding road trip to Vegas. We packed up the car and started our trip at Big Bend National Park where we spent three days camping in the desert. We went on some amazing hikes, took a dip in the Rio Grande and saw a bear! Then we went to Santa Fe for a few days followed by Las Vegas. We stayed at the New York Hotel on the strip and got married in the Valley of Fire State Park, just outside of the city. We wrote our own vows and were married by a husband-and-wife team; he did the ceremony and she took the photos. It was a very intimate and beautiful setting! Our next stop was Zion National Park where we camped for another three days. Here we did The Narrows hike which was an incredible experience! As we started our long drive back to Houston, we made some stops along the way including a picnic in the Grand Canyon, a haunted stay at a Flagstaff hotel (never again) and a wonderful night in Albuquerque. We had an amazing and memorable road trip and we are so grateful that we were able to come up with a new plan working within the confines of the pandemic. But it obviously wasn’t how we expected our wedding day to go! We are so looking forward to celebrating with our friends, family, and most importantly our parents this time around. See y’all in New Orleans!