Like a lot of modern love stories, ours started with a swipe — good ol’ Bumble. To be honest, neither of us really knew what we were looking for at the time. We weren’t chasing “the one,” just two people hoping for a decent conversation and maybe someone to grab a meal with. And if we’re being really honest… things didn’t exactly click right away.

Our first few messages were a little awkward, full of small talk and polite exchanges. It wasn’t instant fireworks or deep connection — it was more like, “Okay, this person seems nice… let’s see where it goes.” But little by little, something about it kept us talking. The conversations got easier, the humor came out, and before we knew it, we were actually looking forward to hearing from each other.

After a few days of chatting and working through those early, slightly awkward moments, we made plans to meet up. Our first date was at Carson’s Food & Drink - On Main. We both walked in with the usual pre-date nerves, unsure if things would be better in person. (Spoiler: they were.) The conversation flowed in a way it hadn’t before, the food was great, the laughs were genuine, and by the end of the night, we both left feeling like maybe this could be something.

Since then, our love story has been built on little moments that turned into something big — laughing at each other’s ridiculous jokes, learning that we have very different opinions on how to load a dishwasher, turning everyday errands into adventures, and figuring out that home isn’t a place, it’s a person. We’ve built a life full of pizza dates, road trips, church pews, movie marathons, and the kind of inside jokes no one else would understand.

And then came one of the most unforgettable moments…

A few weeks before Easter, during a church Christian Education meeting, Tori half-jokingly mentioned how fun it would be if the youth group had their own Easter egg hunt — because let’s be honest, they would absolutely take down a small child for an egg. Fast forward to youth group night, the hunt was on. After all the eggs were found and counted, Rev. Dr. Leanne Hadley casually announced, “Wait… we’re missing one!” and the youth immediately took off searching. Miraculously, they found it — a golden egg.

They handed it to Lucas, who got down on one knee and asked Tori to marry him right there, surrounded by the youth, who immediately started planning the wedding (one even declared they were going to start writing their wedding speech that night). Turns out, the children’s ministry was in on it too!

It was a perfectly us moment — sweet, chaotic, joyful, a little ridiculous, and surrounded by our church family.

Now, as we look toward the future, we couldn’t be more excited to celebrate this next chapter with all of you. Thanks for being part of our story — from awkward Bumble messages to a golden egg proposal and now to the big day we say “I do.” We can’t wait for all the memories ahead… and we have a feeling the best is yet to come.