The way we met came about in the same as many modern relationships, the internet. A lot of people nowadays meet on Tinder, Hinge, Bumble, The League, but our story began on Craigslist…

In May of 2018, I had just finished up an internship as a strength and conditioning coach at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. I moved back home to Iowa for no more than two weeks when I received another offer for a 5 month internship position at P3 Sports Science in Atlanta, Georgia. For those of you who are somewhat versed in US geography, Iowa and Georgia are not exactly neighboring states. I had to find a place to live in a short amount of time in a place I had zero knowledge of (here enters Craigslist). Luckily, I was able to find a nice young couple that were looking for a third roommate to sublease in their apartment. That couple was Madison’s brother, Conner, and her now sister-in-law, Amanda.

I moved down to Georgia and within one week of living there, I had met the entire immediate Lord family and their significant others, well, everyone except Madison. Madison was on a beach trip with her friends at the time and returned to rave reviews of Conner and Amanda’s new Craigslist roommate. She just “had to meet this guy” (her mom’s words, not mine). Conner, Amanda, and I quickly became friends and Amanda mentioned that I would really get along well with Conner’s sister. About a week later, we all went out for dinner and I immediately knew that there was some chemistry between us when she quoted It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia at dinner.

It is unclear when we truly started dating, all we know is it was sometime in July of 2018. I was the one that fell hard and fell fast. Madison was clearly out of my league and incredibly smart. She had just begun her Master’s program at Georgia State for mental health counseling. Her plan was to graduate and go on to obtain her PhD in Counseling Psychology. A few months into dating, my internship was coming to an end, and I had a choice to make: move back home to Iowa, or stay put in Georgia and see where this relationship could go. Obviously, I chose the latter.

Now, in 2025, after moves to Memphis, Tennessee and Tacoma, Washington, and a 3-year engagement, we are so excited to be back in Georgia for good. As planned, Madison earned her PhD in Counseling Psychology and is a licensed forensic psychologist. I am now designing gyms instead of coaching in them. Our dog (Jojo) and our cat (Remy) are our pride and joy, and we spoil them accordingly. Through the ups and downs of life, we have only grown closer in our love and on May 2nd, 2026, we intend to celebrate the hell out of that journey with all of you.

We hope you can all make it and help us make it a day to remember!