Our story started as every good one does: with a great big "I'm never dating that guy!"

Part 1 - The Meet

Nathan and Katlynn met in the beginning of Covid while Katlynn was teaching a class for Daleville Community Church. Katlynn had just moved back to Indiana from living in California for 5 years and as a pastor at the church, was teaching an introduction class about the church and spiritual gifts via zoom, and Nathan decided to join. Katlynn was still trying to get settled into life in Indiana navigating the changes of Covid, and she was not looking to date; Nathan was navigating life as a father of 3 boys and a heavy equipment operator.

A few months passed and the church decided to try to meet in person again, but outside and in our cars...hey, it's Covid creativity right? Nathan volunteered to be part of the planning and set up crew for Sunday mornings, and Nathan met Katlynn in person that first planning session.

Part 2 - The Denial

A few weeks later, at outdoor church on a Sunday morning, Katlynn's mom invited Nathan to lunch (it came at strong disapproval from Katlynn, and they were going to the WORST restaurant, Bob Evans). Katlynn, knowing her mom, knew this was a set up, but Nathan, being kindhearted, was none the wiser. Katlynn strategically placed one of Nathan's sons in the seat next to her, so she wasn't sitting next to him...Nathan moved his son, and he sat down right next to Katlynn, ruining her plan.

After lunch, Katlynn's mom said exactly what she suspected was coming, "You should date him! He's so nice." Katlynn, being her stubborn self, said "NO" for about a year. (Now don't let that fool you, Nathan says he wasn't interested either).

Fast forward to about 6 months later - Katlynn has started a small group of young adults from Daleville Community Church who get together for game nights and dinner every few weeks; Nathan was part of this group. Over the time this group spent time together, Nathan and Katlynn became friends. Katlynn's mom was still encouraging her to date him (still a no), and Nathan was dating other people. Neither of them were interested in the other.

Part 3 - Ya sure?

Around the holiday season of 2020 things started to change. Katlynn had moved into an apartment that needed a lot of TLC and was studying for her ordination interview. Nathan had been seasonally laid off from his job, and he had a lot of time on his hands. Nathan began coming to Katlynn's apartment to help do some repair work and help her study; they began spending a lot of time together becoming close friends.

Part 4 - Starbucks, Ordination, and the Mice

During the day, Nathan would come visit Katlynn at work every chance he got - Katlynn was working at Starbucks, and Nathan would come by after dropping his boys off with their mom to get something warm. He would stay too long to chat with Katlynn, show her pictures of the girl he was thinking of dating, then go home (and text Katlynn).

Now, Katlynn was in the process of moving. Katlynn's apartment was in the middle of fields in the middle of nowhere. As the temperature dropped outside, the field mice came inside. Katlynn called Nathan frantically to bring over mouse traps and, jokingly, a gun. Nathan showed up with traps, peanut butter, and a BB gun. Nathan would continue to come over the next few days to help with the TLC around the apartment and check mouse traps, but eventually he would stay for dinner and Doctor Who - a show Katlynn had introduced to him, and they decided to only watch it together.

The week of Katlynn's ordination interview came around, and Nathan and their friend, Wendy, spent each night helping Katlynn study. The day of the interview came, and Katlynn passed unanimously! Nathan met Katlynn and her family that evening for dinner to celebrate, and on the way home from that dinner, Katlynn knew her feelings had changed - and she wasn't sure how she felt about that.

Part 5 - The Truck and Katlynn's Birthday

A few weeks passed, and Katlynn and Nathan continued to spend most days in each other presence. When they weren't together, they were texting and sending each other TikToks (Nathan was addicted). The night before Katlynn's birthday, she was supposed to go hang out with Nathan. She called him to see when she should meet him, but he told her they may not be able to hang out; he had just gotten in a wreck. Katlynn insisted she go pick him up as his truck had to be towed. Once all the details were figured out and the truck towed away, Nathan and Katlynn went to his house. There, they discussed the evenings events; Nathan told Katlynn he was glad she was there, and Katlynn (be much more forward than usual) told Nathan he should kiss her. He said no. Katlynn decided that meant he wasn't interested and resigned herself to being "just friends" from there on out.

The next day was Katlynn's birthday. Nathan and Katlynn spent all day together - he even had birthday breakfast with her and her family. That evening, after a family celebration, Katlynn went to Nathan's house to watch more Doctor Who. When Katlynn arrived, they talked about the party she had just come from, and then Nathan kissed her. She was very surprised. After an awkward discussion to figure out what was going on, they decided to go on a date. They have been together ever since.

Part 6 - The Zoo

Months passed and Nathan and Katlynn grew to like each other more and more, eventually falling in love. They spent as much time together as possible. Katlynn loved being with Nathan and his boys and couldn't wait for weekends with them. Jackson, Nathan's oldest, once told Katlynn that his daddy was in love with her and that they were definitely getting married (they had only been dating for a month, but Jackson said this like it was a well known fact).

One weekend, Nathan had planned a trip to the zoo with the boys and his sister's family. The morning of the trip, Katharyn, Nathan's sister, called to let them know she was bringing their good camera to take family pictures (this should have been Katlynn's first clue), and Nathan had told Katlynn to make sure she looked nicer because of these pictures (cuz why would Katlynn wear makeup to a trip to the zoo in the middle of summer if she didn't have to? This should have been her second clue).

They headed to the zoo and Nathan made a point to say they needed to go to the Butterfly House first thing. Off to the Butterfly House they all went - Nathan, Katlynn, Jackson, Cody, Lucas, Katharyn, Craig, and Dylan. Now Dylan, who usually isn't a fan of Uncle Nathan carrying her, wanted him to hold her and not put her down. He carried her through the Butterfly House while she looked at everything, but he kept asking her if she wanted down. Katlynn thought this was strange, since Nathan was always wanting to hold Dylan, but she never let him (this should have been her third clue).

The group got to the center of the Butterfly House, and Katlynn was leading the pack. All of a sudden, she hears Nathan go "Pssst!" She turned around to see him getting down on one knee - you'll have to ask Nathan about this part, but he says that Katlynn's immediate response was, "What are you doing? Shut up? Are you serious?" with lots of giggles interspersed. Nathan then asked Katlynn to marry him, and she said "YES!"

The group took lots of pictures, Lucas learned the word "Fiance", and they headed to the Dolphin Show where Katlynn cried tears of joy.

Part 7 and so on - The Wedding and Happily Ever After

Nathan and Katlynn will be legally married in a small ceremony on December 31, 2021 and will have a large ceremony and reception in Winter of 2022 - details still to come (Covid still causing issues, ya know?).

This is just the beginning of their love story and their family. As their goal is to have a marriage where they bring glory to God and function as a team, Nathan and Katlynn will take all the prayers, words of wisdom, and encouragement offered in the future and invite you to come along side them in their lives. Stay tuned to what comes next!

K&N

Wedding Day