The first time we ever laid eyes on each other, we found ourselves locking eyes with the other in a gaze that, in an instant, told us so much about the other - things like what hobbies we had, where the other person was from, and what values we both held - basically all the information we put on our online dating profiles. We met on Hinge (the dating app meant to be deleted). We know, we know, a love story for the digital ages… but little did we know that the person on the other side of the screen would end up being the person we’d want to spend the rest of our lives with.

In September of 2022, Rachel made the first move, responding to a prompt on Josh’s profile and asking what his favorite TV show was. In an answer that would ignite a kindling interest into a roaring fire of love, he responded “Psych”. After a few weeks of messaging back and forth, we decided it was time to meet each other in person at an upscale cocktail bar in Denver. The conversation was easy and there was a definite spark, so much so that we proceeded to set up a second date the very next day…and then a third consecutive date after that! I guess you could say we had a pretty strong connection.

What sparked the connection you ask?

Well…

Josh was drawn to Rachel’s sweet and bubbly yet down to earth demeanor (not at all what he expected from a California girl), her shared sense of adventure (from travelling to new places to spending time backpacking for the forest service), and her sense of humor (laughing until we cried more times than we can remember). Coupled with the fact that she’s out of this world gorgeous, there's no shortage of reasons why Josh was attracted to Rachel but most importantly, what underlies those reasons is a shared Christian faith.

Rachel was drawn to Josh’s calm and patient demeanor (very much what she expected from a Midwest boy), his humor that matches Rachel’s so perfectly (she can attest to the laughing until we cry innumerable times), and his ability to make people feel loved and included by being the kind-hearted man that he is (something Rachel had been searching for). Josh is no doubt the man that Rachel had been praying she would find (plus he’s so gosh darn cute).

After about a year and a half of dinner dates, camping trips, movie nights, well-timed flower deliveries, and a half marathon thrown in somewhere, Josh decided to get down on one knee. In an eventful engagement scheme - that could easily be it’s own paragraph - suffice it to say Josh surprised Rachel in California at the Venue in the exact spot where, a year later, they would be married with a short speech, a little golden thing with a diamond on it, and a pointed question to which Rachel responded with a definite, albeit shocked, “Yes”.

We are so excited to celebrate our love and the start of our next chapter together with you all and we could not be more thankful for the roles each of you have played in both of our stories, be it separately as individuals or together as a couple! We hope to see you all in California for our special day!