We are so happy to announce our upcoming wedding! Kelli and I met while we were receiving treatment for depression in an inpatient hospital.

Although we met each other during our lowest times, as our relationship grew, we also shared some of our best times.

The first time we met up after the hospital, Kelli invited me to celebrate Chinese New Year with her friends at a quirky dorm called Random Hall at MIT. Kelli was reading pages from A Man's Search for Meaning. After she read aloud a couple of paragraphs to me, I knew she was someone special, someone I could foster a deep connection with. I wanted to impress her and show her how daring I was (and hide the fact that I was a picky eater) by taking up her offer to eat fish brains together that her friends prepared. She was very impressed!

A couple of days later, on our first official date, Kelli said she wanted to try something new, so we visited a hookah lounge in Boston. She was looking for guidance and since I had been to a hookah lounge once before, I had my heart set out to impress her once more. I acted like a pro at hookah as I showed her how to huff and puff. I was overly ambitious, however, as nausea soon crept in. I quickly told Kelli that I was feeling sick and dashed to the bathroom to throw up. As I threw up, I thought to myself, "What have I done? This date is definitely over. There's no way she's going to want to be with me after this. I wouldn't be surprised if she left." I came out of the bathroom and she was still sitting at our booth, with eyes full of concern and compassion. We went on many more dates after that, and they went a little more smoothly.

That summer, we worked as camp counselors in Boston and fell in love with each other. But then, Kelli decided to move back to Oklahoma to be with her family. We didn't want our story to end there, so we made a commitment and went long-distance. We stayed apart for a whole year until I decided to join her in Oklahoma. We moved in together and focused on our studies. A year later, during a beautiful summer visit to Yellowstone National Park, we got engaged! I proposed in front of the Prismatic Springs. This year, we adopted our wonderful puppy named Spud.

Our story is still in the beginning. Who knows what life will throw at us, but we will always face it together. We are excited to share our wedding day with all of you back in New England, where it all started.

With much love,

Alex and Kelli

Photos

Second date at the Boston Aquarium

Engagement at Yellowstone National Park

Engagement Photos