Our story began when both sets of parents began attending the same church (Five Oaks Church) in Minnesota. We had met years prior through Sunday School and attending youth group events, but hadn't ever talked much.

Fast forward years later, Jared was back home for freshman year Christmas break and Julia was at home working at Starbucks. She got asked by one of the youth pastors if she wanted to help volunteer doing tech at the church. In an effort to get out of the house, Julia decided to join the tech team for Wednesday night youth group, only to recognize a very cute boy (aka Jared) in the worship center.

Throughout the rest of his winter break we became good friends and would FaceTime each other almost every night while he was at school. Jared's birthday was coming up, so we messaged and FaceTimed back and forth until we could hang out in person. Finally, February arrived and we decided to have coffee at Starbucks. We began chatting instantly and sparks flew. During that time together, we found out that we have many common interests. We love to enjoy all types of shows together. From sitcoms to drama, we are always down for any type of show. We love listening to and going to see musicals. We also love exploring new places.

The next day, Jared decided to ask Julia if she wanted to go out on a date and if she would be his girlfriend. After he asked her that question, she ran around the house excited saying "A boy asked me out on a date!!!" Neither Jared or Julia had any previous dating experience, but they were ready to take on this new and exciting season of life together.

For our first real date we went to my (Julia's) favorite restaurant Gormans. We rounded out our date by watching an episode of our TV show that we were currently watching at the time.

Fast forward 2 years, Jared proposed to Julia at her favorite vacation place: the Cabin. He got down on one knee and popped the question right on the beach. Julia was at a loss for words but eventually managed to say YES and share the news with both families who were already there.

We've realized along the way that God had put us in the exact right place at the right time, to meet each other. Over the last two years Julia and Jared have laughed, gone on many adventures, grown together in faith, and continue to fall deeper in love every day. We are so thankful that we get to start our happily ever after celebrating with friends and family we love.