Our story is a funny and little bit unconventional one. Parker and Laura's paths first cross in the fall of 2020. Laura was taking A&P during her first semester at MUW. Parker was the senior teacher-assistant for the lab. At the time Parker and Laura were both dating other people and had no interest whatsoever in each other. Parker would hold study sessions before exams for students and Laura really needed an A in the course. At the end of the semester, Laura ended with an A and she never heard from Parker again.

Throughout the rest of her college years, Laura began working at a local church with their youth group. Where she met some pretty special girls. Looking back at this season of life, the Lord's hand was over everything and His plan for Laura and Parker was unfolding.

After graduation, Laura had planned to move back home to start teaching at South Side Elementary and leave her job at the church. In July of 2024, Parker reached out to Laura to ask if she wanted to grab coffee/go out on a date etc. Laura was hesitate and actually rain-checked on Parker several times before finally agreeing to go play pickleball with him one afternoon.

Go figure that the day they played pickleball just so happened to be the hottest day of the year! After playing and sweating for an hour they decided to go get ice cream from Bops. Parker offered to drive but when Laura got into his truck her stomach dropped. She saw a picture of a young girl that just so happened to be one of her previous students from the church.

If there is one thing about Laura, she went into full panic. Thinking that she just went out with her one of student's older brother. But boy was it worst. She asked him who the girl and who did he know Annie thinking it was his sister. Parker quietly responded "my niece.... Annie Parker". Dots started to connect in Laura's brain- connecting the dots between Bes, Mae, and Annie Parker and Parker. It had gone completely over Laura's head that they had shared the same last name. Laura told Parker in a panic that he had to be one to tell the girls that they were dating because Laura is a terrible liar and cannot keep a secret to save her life.

After several weeks of going out on dates Parker finally asked Laura to be his Girlfriend. After a few months of dating and by this time Laura was all in on Parker since he was the complete opposite of every other guy she had dated. He was kind, patient, caring, and man after the Lord's own heart and plan. This was when Parker finally decided to break the news that he was applying the Med School in the midst of finishing pharmacy school. Laura didn't know what this meant for their relationship but she trusted in the Lord's Will for their relationship. After long, hard months of watching Parker study for the MCAT, while also being in the midst of his third year of pharmacy school--Parker asked Laura to marry him on a trip they had taken to visit a medical school in Harrogate, TN he had been accepted to.

Through a ton of prayer and seeking the Lord, Parker and Laura ultimately decided that Monroe, LA was where the Lord was calling them for Parker to attend medical school.

Throughout their whole relationship, it has been crazy and comforting to look back and to see how the Lord has been working in both of their lives but also within their lives together. The Lord was working and brought them together. Little glimpses throughout the past several years has been the Lord interconnecting their lives together.