Welcome to the first day of the rest of our lives as husband and wife!

We met through Peter, a mutual friend and Nick's roommate at the time. Nick had always intrigued me from the moment we met; he was always kind, easy to talk to, and honestly cared about everyone in his friend group. At the time, I was currently working through a difficult breakup, not to mention my senior capstone project, so I was confused about my place in the world. Nick stepped up when he saw that I was struggling, and was there for me everyday. He talked me through things, watched funny videos with me when I got overwhelmed, we worked out together, and he never pressured me about his growing romantic feelings. Though I was initially worried about not giving him the love and attention he deserved as I finished the most difficult semester in college thus far, I couldn't deny the fact that I had budding romantic feelings as well. We prayed together about the timing, and God answered by encouraging us to become more than just friends. It was chaotic and a big change, but worth it for every single moment since.

Nick had become interested in plants because of the jungle in my dorm, and so for our first official date (and his birthday!) we drove from Ferris State University to Grand Rapids. We visited the local plant shop "The Plant Parlor" and Nick chose his first plant, a massive Gollum Jade. It's still thriving today, in Nick's jungle apartment.

Nick and I try to make a point of regularly dressing up to the nines and going out on the town; it's something that keeps our relationship fresh and fun. The weekend of our six month anniversary, Nick suggested we go back to my hometown for the weekend and spend an evening on a dressed-up date night. Nick gave me a manicure, then he suggested we visit the local greenhouse I grew up going to with my parents to pick out a small plant to mark the occasion. I wandered around for a time, looking closely at each plant while Nick nervously followed me over to a small table where, surrounded by ferns and moss, there was a ring box. As I realized we weren't really there to buy a plant, he got down on one knee and said some beautiful words that nearly made me cry as a photographer appeared out of nowhere and my parents popped up from the back of the shop. He wasn't on his knee long before I kissed him and accepted his proposal with a "Yes, absolutely!"