What a crazy and wild ride these last 2 years have been. As some of you know we did get legally married in 2020 with a very limited guest count because of the pandemic. We were not able to have our reception to celebrate with all those that mean so much to us. For those of you that do not know, we moved to Fresno a little over a year ago to find our apartment and begin building our lives together. The reception this year will be missing to big parts of our lives, Kayt Anderson (bridesmaid & cousin) and Gayle Steffensen (grandmother). We are very grateful that they were both able to be a part of our original ceremony. If there is anything that we have learned, even further, from these last couple years, it's that the love and support from friends and family really does go a long way. We are so very excited that we get the opportunity to celebrate with those who mean so much to us and look forward to seeing every one of you! Chris & Kali

We met in 2014 and quickly became great long distance friends, through long FaceTime calls and even more inside jokes. After a while, we both had realized that not only our best friends, but soulmates, were in front of us the entire time. The funny thing is, we were both not really looking for love. However the love we both had for each other, had found us. In summer of 2015 we officially became a couple. After being together for a year, Christian took the plunge to move to California. Through a lot of adventures, growth, and the addition of another fur baby for the last 5 years, here we are. Two cats, one bun, and two people madly in love. We are very excited to begin the journey of starting our first home together and living together, as husband and wife.

For quite some time I was thinking of elaborate ways to propose that didn't seem obvious. During the process of getting the ring design, I was in contact with her friend, Danielle, and her mom, Lisa, to figure out a plan. The planning took a total of about a month and I was getting excited! Was I really gonna pull something surprising off without spoiling it? The plan was set. About a week before, I had told Kali "Maybe we should take a look at where the ceremony is going to take place and get a third opinion on how it looks?". It was during this time that Danielle would come along and she can take a few "test" photos of us. The day of, I had gotten out of church and up to this point in my life, I have never ever been that nervous before. The night before Kali even made a comment about how clammy my hands were. I couldn't eat anything all day, let along stop my heart from racing. After Danielle came, the three of us went down to the spot. I got out of the car with my backpack, but little did she know, it only had a bouquet of flowers in it. Or so I thought. After we took a couple photos, I then went ahead on the trail to "use the bathroom" and told them to find me after a few minutes if I didn't come back. As I waited, I brought out the flowers from the backpack, grabbed the ring in my back pocket and held onto it like my life depended on it. All I could tell myself was "Do not drop the ring in the dirt, Chris." over and over. I finally saw them coming down the path and I pulled the flowers out and held the ring in hand. In this moment, all of the anxiety disappeared. When I got down on my knee I was only filled with excitement for whatever adventure awaits for our next chapter as a couple.

I knew the whole time! :) hehe