Nicole and Chris first met over 20 years ago while working together at Pinecrest Elementary in Thousand Oaks, California. They were partnered up to lead the third-grade summer group; essentially supervising a room full of energetic kids while pretending they had everything under control. Chris was only there for the summer, but somehow managed to make a lasting impression (which says a lot considering the chaos of third graders and popsicle breaks). Not long after, Chris reached out to Nicole on MySpace (because it was the early 2000s and that’s how great love stories began). He asked her out, and while life eventually pulled them in different directions, they stayed in touch as friends for years. Chris even made a habit of showing up for Nicole’s birthday celebrations, proving early on that he knew how to keep his priorities straight. As time passed, life took them down separate paths. Nicole moved to the Bay Area to begin her career at Meta, and Chris welcomed his son Ryder and eventually moved to Tennessee. Then, many years later, fate (and Instagram) stepped in. Nicole saw Chris post about moving into his own apartment and sent a message to say congratulations. What started as a quick catch-up quickly turned into daily texts and phone calls. Chris kept inviting Nicole to come visit Tennessee, and after a year of talking, she finally agreed. When Nicole arrived, it had been nearly 10 years since they had last seen each other, but it felt like no time had passed at all. Chris clearly agreed, because he invited her back just one month later. During that visit, he asked Nicole to be his girlfriend... and from there, things moved quickly. They dated long distance between California and Tennessee while building their dream home together (because apparently normal long-distance wasn’t ambitious enough). In December 2024, Nicole officially moved to Tennessee to join Chris and Ryder and start their life together. Then in January 2026, Chris asked Nicole to marry him. Turns out that third-grade summer partnership was the start of something pretty special after all.