We’d like to take you back… To 2018, to an art exhibit at the Ace Hotel in Chicago. Both of us attending for the same reason: to support our friend Joe, a talented local artist. Little did we know we’d meet our other half that evening… Midway through the event, Joe pulled us to the side and said, “Jay and Cristina, I want to introduce you two because believe it or not, you live in the same apartment building.” The two of us immediately launched into a conversation, swapping stories about our favorite late-night doorman and how great the area was. We quickly began building a friendship in the months following our meeting, indulging in conversations about our background, our families, our favorite foods, and what we wanted out of our careers. We connected on a deep level fairly quickly and were excited for another new friend in the city. Our first date started with Hi 5 Ramen (Cristina’s first time having ramen) and finished back at Ace Hotel - the site of our first meeting. At that point we knew we owed it to each other to explore this romantically. The last half of 2018 and first half of 2019 were spent in Chicago, making career moves, living together and growing together. Then in September 2019, Jay came home with some news: he’d gotten a role in music at Meta (Facebook) in Los Angeles. After a sit down with Cristina’s parents, several logistical conversations and many (many) tearful goodbyes, we made the move to LA. We both started new roles & survived the pandemic together in a new city. Not only did we survive, we actually THRIVED! Coming out of the worst part of the pandemic, we bought our first house in February 2022, moving from Brentwood to our new neighborhood in West Hollywood where we reside today. We topped off 2022 with a beautiful engagement on Jay’s birthday (of all days!), 6/24. We are so thankful to everyone reading this as you’ve been huge supporters of ours throughout our journey together. We’ve chosen Mexico City as our wedding destination as an ode to not only Cristina’s Mexican heritage, but to a culture and country that the two of us so cherish and appreciate. We’re grateful to share this with the people that matter to us most, and it’s not lost on us how big of a trip we’re asking our guests to make. In addition to the wedding day itself, we’ve put together a thoughtful list of recommendations for our guests to enjoy around CDMX (please find this in the “Things to Do” tab), in the hopes that you’ll fall in love with the beauty of this country the same day we did. Nos vemos en noviembre! 🇲🇽