Her Side:

Nick will say that we met in 2016 at Little Mermaid auditions at Eagan Summer Theater, but I remember our first interaction being the following year at Hunchback of Notre Dame auditions at the same theater. We were both cast in 2017, and began a three-summer run of shows together. We spent countless hours together in rehearsals and performances over the next three summers, playing rock, paper, scissors in between scenes and learning music and dances together.

Fast forward to June 2021, we hadn’t seen each other in almost two years, but reconnected and went on our first date to the American Swedish Institute for their Midsommar celebration. We spent the next eight hours exploring the museum, getting ice cream at Nelson’s Ice Cream, and watching the sunset by the Mississippi River – complete with my favorite candy of peanut M&M’s and sparklers. Nick had completely planned out every moment of our date, and I remember feeling like if this was a dream, I didn't want to wake up from it. For the next year, Nick and I traveled back and forth between Austin, Minnesota (where Nick was teaching and living) and St. Paul (where I was living). We spent a lot of time driving down to Rochester for our favorite restaurant (Thai Pop), cooking dinner together, and walking around the pond (Rosie, my family’s dog even made a few trips down to Austin with me!), until Nick decided to move up to the cities. Once Nick moved up to the cities, we rescued our sweet puppy, Cadillac, continued performing together, traveled as close as camping near St. Cloud after St. John’s Homecoming games to as far as Costa Rica for a wedding, watched The Office a few times, and so much more.

In April 2024, Nick and I decided to go on a trip to Montreal and Quebec City to see the total solar eclipse on April 8. We met up with my friend outside the Montreal Science Center and, unknowingly to me, Nick held up a sign to them saying “Heads up I’m proposing.” Nick had spent the last few months dropping hints that he wasn’t proposing on our trip, so it was a complete surprise to me! Nick has always kept me on my toes, and his proposal was no different. From our first date to our engagement and beyond, Nick has shown me that he leads his life with passion and thoughtfulness, and I feel so lucky to be a part of it.

His Side:

In college, I was told that a first date should have three ‘rules’; 1. No longer than an hour, 2. No alcohol, 3. No multiple locations. On our first date, Katie and I broke all these rules. I was living down in Austin and she was living with her grandma in St. Paul, but I was up teaching summer school and I was scared that I wouldn’t get enough time to show her how much I cared about her. So, I decided to lay it all on the line with an eight-hour first date with three locations. We went to the Swedish Institute, Nelson’s Ice Cream, and then had a picnic on the Mississippi River. At the very end of the sunset, with sparklers going, I shared the song Cecily Smith with her, something that she says, “showed her what it would be like to be in a relationship together”.

I think during that day we learned a lot about each other. I got to see how caring and adaptable Katie is, while she learned that I am thoughtful and adventurous. I convinced her to go zip-lining in Costa Rica, and she has shown me how to care for our pup in the best way. She convinces me to swim laps with her at our gym, but I support her the best way I can to get her outside her comfort zone. Over the last almost four years, we have found how to best complement each other and have grown as a team.

As we’ve grown together, we have come to live the idea that in life, it is not the things that you do, but who you do them with. There will always be things in life that cause stress, pain, or fear, but having someone like Katie by my side means that no matter what happens, I’ll be doing it with the person I love most. But that's the exciting thing about life; there are always mountains with the valleys, and I am so blessed that we get to do them together.

N&K

Wedding Day

1:30 PM–2:30 PM

Ceremony

4:30 PM–11:30 PM

Reception