We first met at a friends pre-race pasta party in August of 2018. We immediately got along great, talking about the big race the next day and about nothing in particular. We were pulled apart by the party happenings before we ever exchanged names but quickly rectified that a few days after.

Over the next year and a half we were both frequent attendees of November Project. We hung out at many events, went out to bars with friends and sang country music in the streets together. Kyle says there was always a spark, Lauren isn't sure she remembers.

In February of 2020 we went on a ski trip to Lake Placid. Kyle gave Lauren a ride up in his car. We talked the whole ride and Lauren impressed Kyle with her boldness on the mountain. It was a ski trip for the record books, pretty much on the eve of Covid.

COVID HITS and in person events are cancelled. Kyle asks Lauren to hang out, which they do several times. Kyle thought he was strongly implying that these were dates. On the 5th-6th of these Kyle asks “Hey, we are dating, right?” Lauren doesn't immediately respond in the affirmative, but after some talking about it with Kelly, she agrees. things are looking promising. Over the next several weeks we continue to get serious, Kyle finally meets Eloise, (she gave her approval eventually).

We go on weekend getaways, Shenandoah, camping trips, and the shore among them. We cook dinner together often, meet up with friends and go on “safe Covid dates”. Eventually, Lauren meets Kyle’s family and they all give a quick thumbs up. Over Thanksgiving weekend Lauren helps Kyle do work on his condo. She spends four days helping to strip a popcorn ceiling, fix drywall, and paint (not to gloss over how helpful she was in the choosing the paint colors).

At Christmas Kyle joins Lauren in Geneva and meets her family. They explore the town, eat, exchange gifts and play board games. It was the first of many wonderful trips to the lake as a couple.

2021 was another great year. More trips, dates, fun times, and races. In June, Lauren (and Eloise) moved in with Kyle, quickly transforming the bachelor pad into a “proper home”. This included the purge of about 60 extra drinking glasses from Kyle's abundant glassware collection.

October brought another major change in our lives when we signed up to foster an animal. Within 24 hours, we received a call that there was a sweet little kitten that needed a foster home. We picked up the little orange fuzzball with big ears and fleas, and after a quick sink bath Kyle fell in love. His magnetism and stinky-ness gave him the name Joey, and after a week with him we knew we couldn’t give him up. In November Joey was officially adopted, and Kyle got his first ever furry pet.

In 2022, we decided we needed a change of scenery. After carefully considering our options, and the lack of sunshine we got in Philadelphia during lockdown, we settled on San Diego. In September of 2022 we moved to Carlsbad where we still live today.

In April 2024 after a lot of planning, Kyle asked Lauren to marry him and Lauren said “yes”.