It was a cool June Saturday in Houston and Kristen was meeting some girlfriends for patio drinks and girl time. Shortly before the girls were going to meet up, Kristen received a text from one of the girls, Julia, letting her know that Julia's husband and "their friend Mike" wanted to crash the party. Before you knew it Julia, her husband Nick and Mike were on their way to meet the girls. Mike still vividly remembers seeing Kristen in the corner table when he walked in the door and was hoping she was the girl they were there to meet. A few patio drinks turned into dinner which later turned into dancing - both Kristen and Mike remember offering suggestions for the next group activity in an effort to keep the day from ending. The connection was undeniable, but Mike was a few weeks shy of picking up and moving to Japan for a work project. Kristen and Mike knew they had something special so despite the distance, they kept in touch.

Mike was back in the states on a rotation home from Japan and planned a weekend trip to visit Kristen. Unfortunately (or fortunately?), that weekend happened to be the same weekend as Hurricane Harvey, and despite the warnings from the National Weather Service, Mike decided to move forward with the trip and flew from Denver to Houston, straight into the path of Hurricane Harvey. "How bad can it be?", he thought. But, due to flooded streets and cancelled flights, a 3 day trip turned into 10 straight days of isolation in a 700 sq ft apartment. By the end, they were head over heels in love, though it took a few more weeks before they said it aloud to one another.

Mike and Kristen planned a long weekend at Garner State Park, west of San Antonio. After a fun night on the river walk, they woke up early Friday morning, headed to Garner, set up camp and prepared for a hike up Old Baldy trail. Mike packed a backpack with some beers, dog treats and the ring (and later Kristen figured out why Mike was so adamant about separate backpacks that day lol). After making it to the top, Mike wasn't sure if his heart was hammering because of the climb or what he was about to do next. While looking out over the hill country, Mike got down on one knee and asked Kristen to spend their rest of lives together. She said "of course!!" and now here they are, planning their wedding day to celebrate their love with those they hold closest to their hearts.