Hello Friends and Family, We are so thankful for each of you and the impact you have made in our lives. We couldn't imagine celebrating our special day without the presence of those who we love and cherish dearly. Before this day, we also wanted to just take a few moments to share our hope for this sweet season. We believe that marriage is an image of Christ's love and sacrifice for us so that we can one day be united with our God. We hold tightly to this hope and pray that our future marriage would proclaim God's goodness and faithfulness. If any of this doesn't make sense, we would absolutely love the opportunity to share more about this! Again, we love you all and are beyond excited to celebrate with you!

Phoebe and I first met during my junior year and her freshman year at Texas A&M University. I was leading with Asian American Intervarsity while she was trying to find a ministry to join. Through spending time together, we found that we shared many of the same passions and interests: traveling, swimming, Jesus, the great outdoors, and puppies, not in any specific order. We quickly became friends, but did not start dating until a year later.

Our first official date was also the same day we made our relationship official! By then, we had known one another and been friends for over a year. Before this day, we had spent a lot of time together - just deepening out friendship and striving to understand one another's expectations and desires for the future and in marriage. For our first date, we went to Cafe Eccell and then went on a walk in a park. After the date, we officially established that we were dating! Yay!

Phoebe: I think some of our favorite dates have always had something to do with music or food! One of my favorite artists is Ben Rector and Mackenzie had bought us incredible tickets for my birthday last year. It was so much fun - not only is he amazing live (seriously, if you have even considered going to see him in person, you should!), but it was so sweet to just share a night with Mackenzie remembering certain songs that we had enjoyed together throughout college. Some of my other most memorable moments with Mackenzie were from college when we were doing long distance; whenever one of us would visit, we would make an effort to try new activities or restaurants!

The Set-Up: The month prior to the day, I told Phoebe that we would take turns planning a date every weekend. I also began contacting family and close friends to help me that day. Josie, our newest addition, was chosen from a friend's litter in Diana, TX, and she was picked up the week before the proposal. (She was a difficult surprise to hide.) 24 July 2020: That night, we prepared a charcuterie dinner for ourselves, consisting of some of our favorite meats and cheeses. Then we went to Phoebe's favorite ice cream place, Big Dash, where we had Arabic ice cream. When we were at the ice cream place, my family, Phoebe's family, and a few friends of ours prepared Phoebe's house with lights, candles, and flower petals before we came back. Once we arrived back at Phoebe's house, she knew exactly what was going on, but little did she know. I had previously made a photobook from some our favorite moments in our relationship, so we sat down and enjoyed reminiscing. After going through the book, I dropped to one knee and proposed...but the ring was not in the box! Phoebe was so excited to say "yes" that she did not even notice! As I was "searching" for the lost ring, family and friends were in hiding. My sister, Dominique, was hiding with Josie who had the ring attached to her collar. Dominique threw out a tennis ball, and Josie ran out after it. Phoebe was both surprised and overwhelmed. Once the dust settled, I proposed again with the ring, to which Phoebe graciously responded "Yes!"