we're tying the knot!

The first time we ~officially~ met was when we were grouped together in a Core Four for a Christian campus ministry we were a part of called Ignite Texas. But apparently the first time Jared noticed me was when he heard me screech excitedly and saw me tackle one of my friends at a party earlier in the year. -Taylor

After a couple weeks of intense flirting, I finally asked Taylor out at like 3am after a mini road trip. Our date took place about a week later and consisted of dinner at Gourdough's, a failed attempt to play mini golf at Peter Pan, a quick bathroom break at McDonald's, and a VERY chilly hour or so atop the 360 overlook. It was so awkward and we both agree it was one of our worst dates. -Jared

To celebrate the end of the semester, Jared invited me out on our first ever "fancy date." I had no idea where we were going, but I was really excited. I put on one of my favorite dresses and some heels I had borrowed from a girl in my missional community, and was ready to go! Jared came to pick me up ("he's wearing a blazer!!!" was my roommate's remark) and we went to a fancy Italian food place downtown. After, we had our own drive-in movie and watched Walter Mitty in the bed of Jared's truck. He drove me back to my place and we sat in the car talking for a while. I believe his exact words were "Do you wanna be my girlfriend or what?" and I said "Heck yeah!" -Taylor

At the beginning of our first summer as a couple, we spent it almost entirely apart. We worked at Laity Lodge Youth Camp, but we were at opposite ends of the camp and across the river from each other (Taylor worked with the older kids, and I worked with the younger). Without many opportunities to see each other in person, and absolutely ZERO service in the canyon, we found a way to stay close by sending each other "like letters" (since we didn't say the "L" word yet lol). We loved what we had to say to each other so much, that we still send letters to each other to this day! -Jared

Jared and I went out to eat at Mandola's, an Italian place in Austin. We incorrectly thought it was a fancy restaurant...so we were dressed to the nines while everyone else was in yoga pants and sweatshirts. During dinner, we talked about the possibility of marriage, and I got a little overwhelmed. We ended up going out to the car and talking. Jared comforted me and reminded me that God would see us through no matter what. And then he told me he loved me and I FREAKED OUT!!! It was such a sweet moment, and I'm so excited we get to eat Mandola's with y'all at our wedding! -Taylor

So this happened about a week after I said it...so you can imagine where my mind was at during that week. We had just driven down to San Antonio for our friends' wedding, and I was dropping Taylor off at their house for her to stay the night. The only issue was that the key that was left for us wasn't working, so we went to the back porch to wait for him to come back and hand it off. While we were back there talking, I helped her off the ground and she gave me a fat ole kiss and told me that she loved me. Needless to say, I was pretty excited (speechless, in fact), and I couldn't do anything but hug her and swing her around...and then say that I love her too. -Jared

This was probably the craziest Thursday night of my life... Our church was holding a college worship night that was all about God's call for us to go to the nations. I went with my missional community, and Jared was actually unable to come because he had family in town. During the sermon, the pastor read us a letter that a famous missionary, Adoniram Judson, wrote to ask for Anne Judson's hand in marriage. He told her father that he was planning on taking the Gospel to India and that as his wife, Anne, would face many difficulties and possibly be martyred. The pastor then read Anne's response letter: she was so excited to marry Adoniram and thought that Jesus was worth it. I sat there in awe. I was so scared to even get married, much less to follow God all the way across the globe. I started praying my fears and asking God for comfort. Then, God graciously gave me a vision. He showed me what it would be like to marry Jared--even if we had to go through some of the most difficult things in life--the things I was most afraid of. And at the end, even though our relationship had been through a lot, Jared and I were still together, holding hands with Jesus. I started crying and realized that even though I was still somewhat afraid, no matter what happened, God would be faithful through it all. I went over to Jared's and told him what happened. I said he didn't need to say anything and could take time to pray about it. He told me that he had been praying about it and that he would love to marry me. What a crazy Thursday!!! -Taylor

We went on a break for like a week....it happens. -Both

If you're planning a proposal...I'm so sorry. It is very difficult and takes a LOT of forethought, but I gotta say the payoff is so worth it. For us, the day started off early in the morning at the 360 overlook (spot of our first date) where we read our Bibles and prayed. We then got lunch with some of our friends from San Antonio (a successful diversion) and hiked with them for a little. After a few fake goodbyes, Taylor and I went back to our homes to get ready to go to a pumpkin patch. We were a little behind schedule at this point so I had to cut out our visit to Peter Pan mini golf...again. We took some cute pictures at this pumpkin patch at a church in South Austin, and we headed out to Auditorium Shores (where we first met) to watch the sunset and eventually get engaged. Here's where things started to go off the rails a bit. For one, Taylor was so hungry and would NOT stop reminding me. She wanted to pick up some food on the way over, or maybe even skip watching the sunset since we had been there a few times before. I had no idea what to do so I just told her no and moved on. The second issue was that she was wearing a (beautiful) dress in some pretty windy weather. So by the time we reached the spot that I was gonna ask, she was cold, hungry, and definitely a little annoyed. But pretty soon, she forgot about all of that. While we were sitting on the grass, I handed her another letter (like the ones we'd send each other at camp), stood her up, mumbled some stuff that neither of us can remember, knelt down, and finally asked my best friend to be my wife. I think she said yes. -Jared