This story begins with Tinder, but unlike most Tinder stories, it does not begin with a date. Jesse was a dear friend of both Alex and Natalie. He asked Natalie on an evening in 2016 what she had planned for the evening. She claimed that she had a Tinder date she was going to go on (probably with current groomsmen Manraj). Jesse boldly interjected, "How would you like to skip that and go on a date with destiny!" And just like that, destiny was set in motion. Jesse's intentions had been for a while to set Alex and Natalie up. He had mentioned to Alex that he had this really weird friend and that since Alex was also really weird, he thought that the two of them would be a perfect fit for one another. And he could not have been more right. On Christmas Eve of 2016, Alex and Natalie had their first date, which oddly enough consisted of going to Midnight Christmas Eve service and watching Christmas movies together. Right away, it was evident that their senses of humor were aligned and that they made each other laugh in a very unique way. Also immediately apparent was their shared love of animals. The rode was not always easy. Together they went through shared loss, surgeries, unemployment, finding new careers, but they went through these things together and came through them stronger. Through their love of animals, they created a home together where all of the misfit animals of the greater Chicagoland area could find two loving parents and a place to be themselves. Alex and Natalie indeed are two kindred spirits, who love to laugh together, grow together, raise animals together, and most importantly, love each other. To get to marry one's best friend is the greatest joy, and joy is what Alex and Natalie have found in finding one another.