One fateful rainy German night, Wil joined his friend to the least likely place fighter pilots would be… a gathering of people that weren’t pilots. Even if it was full of nerds, at least there would be beer. As fate would have it, he introduced himself and sat across from Cristina. Later in the evening when someone asked Cristina what Wil’s name was, she very confidently replied, "Phillip." Unfortunately, Cristina is not only selectively hard of hearing but also extremely stubborn. Despite Wil politely correcting her, she refused to accept that he hadn't simply lied about his name. They had unknowingly sparked a debate that would live on forever. Needless to say, Wil did not accept Cristina's invitation to go to another bar and went home to play video games instead...

Luckily, their initial impressions didn’t hold too much weight. More beer, more Mosel reisling, and more time spent using together each other's real names brought Cristina and Wil closer together until they became practically inseparable (despite the Air Force’s best efforts.) In between the gauntlet of long distance of their first year together, they swam in Lake Como, shared bottles of wine in towns all along the Mosel river, and stomped on tables at Oktoberfest. They kayaked the southern coast of France, snorkeled in Okinawa, and spent lots of lazy Sundays laying in Wil's hammock with the windows open. No matter what they were doing, it was made that much better by them being together.

With Wil's next work assignment swiftly approaching, C&W agreed that they wanted to give their relationship every opportunity to succeed. So after a vow exchange via text of "Well should we?" and "Might as well." a survey filled out on helloprenup.com, and a marriage license from the state of Montana (physically signed by neither of them), they took advantage of another fateful reunion in the middle of Cristina's deployment to celebrate their newly acquired government benefits and insistence that they were NOT MARRIED!

After reuniting, Wil and Cristina are finally able to enjoy all the wonderful simple things: Walks to the grocery store, dinners at home, and adopting their cat Louie all while planning out the next chapter of their lives together in Korea. Unfortunately, their foolproof plans did not account for what life had in store for them. So they said annyeong to their Korean adventure and hello to the DC area. This year gets their money’s worth of their Montana marriage license. Buying a house together? Check. In sickness and in health? Check. It leaves everyone around them (and Cristina) asking what they could possibly be waiting for, isn’t it about time to do this for real?

After 3 months apart (and over a year of Cristina’s crusade for an official engagement), Wil convinces Cristina to let him plan a day out for them. For anyone who’s planned anything with Cristina, you know this is a massive concession for her. They get in the car and start their 2 hour drive to their undisclosed location. Cristina is wearing athletic clothes, Wil looks like he’s having brunch at the country club with the boys. They park at the trailhead at Shenandoah, hike to the lower falls on a beautiful spring day, and ask a stranger to take a picture of them. All of a sudden, Wil is down on one knee with a ring in his hand asking, “Cristina, will you marry me?” Overwhelmed with emotion and through laughs and tears Cristina agrees, “Might as well.” They sit on the rock ledge watching the water fall and letting the time pass and enjoying the promise of forever. The day rounds out with a stop by a brewery to celebrate with a beer and a pizza and a two hour drive back home (which Cristina slept through half of.)

And now, dear reader, is the time you enter the story. Perhaps you were there on the first night we met, or perhaps you’ve known one of us since we were in diapers… however you have known Cristina and Wil, now you will forever be a part of our wedding day story. Welcome to the start of our forever, we couldn’t be more happy you’re here and hope to see you there on our wedding day to share in all our joy.