Wedding Date on Jul 15, 2017

How Nick Met Lauren “Upon graduating high school, one of the things that kids look forward to the most is going to college and meeting the love of their life. In August of 2011, I met a girl who would soon become my girlfriend and eventually, my wife. I remember arriving in Athens for the first week of college and being so excited to meet new people. The first several days of class had passed, and I was growing accustomed to eating all of my meals with friends rather than my family back at home. Well, one evening during the first week of class, the boys decided to head over to Snelling Dining Commons for dinner. After some delicious breakfast-for-dinner, we made sure to stop by the girls’ table to say “Hi”. As we were walking over to them, I caught a glimpse of the most beautiful girl I had ever seen, and I was so thankful that she was sitting at the table that we were headed to. I remember standing there as the other guys were talking and being unable to take my eyes off of Lauren. Right from the start, I knew that there was something special about her…I knew that one day I would marry her. As our friendship developed over the next few months, I became more and more interested in and attracted to her. We began talking more often and seeing each other around campus or in group settings, and I was absolutely loving it. Every now and then, I would drop a little hint that I was interested in dating her (or at least I thought they were obvious enough), and FINALLY in December of 2012, we went on our first date together. I picked Lauren up in my mom’s Infiniti G35 (much cooler than my loud, obnoxious truck) and made sure to open the car door for her – especially because I saw her mom peeking through the blinds! I planned for us to have dinner at P.F. Chang’s, followed by a movie at the Mall of Georgia, but of course we were running a little behind schedule, so we changed the plan to the quicker version of P.F. Chang’s: Panda Express. With the time saved, we made the movie on time, and enjoyed every minute of each other’s company (even though I was as nervous as I had ever been in my whole life). Now that our first date was in the books, it was smooth sailing. On January 13, 2013, I asked Lauren to be my girlfriend, and I still continue to fall more in love with her every day!” How Lauren Met Nick “Nick & I met the first week of freshman year at UGA in Snelling Dining Hall thanks to one of our closest mutual friends. I still have a visual of him standing towards the back of a group of people I was meeting all at once. We only exchanged names & a few words but I immediately knew we would be friends (classic, right? guys just LOVE to know they’re gonna be a great *friend*). We happened to have psychology together that semester & Nick was always happy to send me his notes when I missed class here & there (he also got mad when I did better on the tests, especially since I used some of his notes to study). We hung out every now & then, but talked regularly throughout freshman year, into the summer, & then sophomore year began. Towards the end of the semester, the friendly conversation turned sweeter & sweeter until he asked me out on a date over Christmas break. I still remember the butterflies & giddiness I felt when I saw him pulling into my driveway (of course I was peeking out of the blinds anxiously awaiting his arrival). Everything felt right, comfortable, & effortless on our date, & in that moment, I knew this guy was something very special. Fast forward about 4 years & here we are, ENGAGED to be married! I am so thankful that Nick patiently pursued my heart from the beginning & that, in His timing, the Lord opened my eyes to loving him as much more than just my loyal, sweet friend. We’ve grown together, cried together, laughed together, & above all, we’ve loved each other through it all. It is incredible to look back & see how the Lord’s hand guided & shaped both of us before & throughout dating: preparing, changing, & maturing our hearts to love one another the way we are called to love. I loved Nick as my friend, I loved Nick as my boyfriend, I am LOVING Nick as my fiancé, & I know that my absolute adoration for this guy will grow exponentially more as we start our happily ever after together. We cannot wait for our forever to begin!” How He Asked “Nick, we are going to Disney World the weekend of May 13. Can you come??” “I don’t think so, unfortunately I have to stay in Wisconsin for work until Friday night.” And let the planning begin! I knew that I wanted to propose to Lauren this summer, but I was unsure of when, how, where, etc. until it hit me like a ton of bricks…Disney World, duh! The stars were aligned and I had everything I needed in place for the perfect proposal. During the week leading up to Saturday, I spent several hours on the phone planning with the Andersons (who were in Disney World all week) and my family. Ashley made sure that Lauren’s fingernails were painted, Mrs. Susan claimed that she wanted family pictures taken on Saturday to ensure that Lauren was dressed nice, Mr. David was the brains behind the logistics – location options, timing, stalling when needed, etc., Eric was all set with cinematography ideas to do his best Steven Spielberg impression, Dad rented a minivan for us to use for the weekend and toughed out the first half of the drive, Mom immediately began brainstorming great proposal ideas and helped narrow down locations, and Jules was ready to capture some magic with the GoPro. I landed in Atlanta late Friday night and jumped in the car with Mom, Dad, and Jules. We arrived in Orlando around 3AM and got as much sleep as we could before the big day. The next morning, we went to the agreed upon location only to find a group of 50 people there preparing for an Epcot scavenger hunt…cue backup plan. We rushed over to the England area of Epcot while Mr. David stalled to get me some extra time. Ashley and Mr. David were the first of the Andersons to arrive and we all quickly got into our places. While waiting for Lauren to get there, I was so nervous thinking about her being en route to me that I thought my heart was going to beat out of my chest! A few minutes later, around the corner came Eric, camera phone in hand, Mrs. Susan, a huge smile on her face, and Lauren, completely and utterly shocked to see me standing there. I couldn’t believe this was finally happening, and all I could think about was how beautiful she looked. She caught a glimpse of my family and at that moment, I’m pretty sure she knew exactly what was about to happen. I nervously grabbed her hand and led her over to the prettiest garden in the England area. Looking deeply into her pure, tear-filled eyes, I tried my absolute best to recreate the speech I had been practicing all week, but I am still not 100% sure of what I even said. Looking up at Lauren from my knee and seeing the purest form of joy I had ever seen in my life is a memory that I will hold near to my heart for the rest of our lives together. Both of our families came over to where we were to begin the celebration and after what felt like 1,000 pictures, we had the whole day to spend together in Disney World. Needless to say it was a day that I will never forget!” How She Said Yes “If there’s one thing people know about me, it’s that I LOVE Disney World. My family has been going multiple times a year ever since I can remember & it’s served as the backdrop for some of my most treasured memories. So naturally, getting proposed to at Disney World has been a fantasy of mine since I was a little girl. Nick travels to & from Wisconsin every week for work, so although I’d hoped he could join us on our annual summer trip, he was unable to do so. My family & I spent the week enjoying our second home, as the weather was perfect & the crowds were minimal. On Friday, my mom told me that we were heading to Epcot early on Saturday morning to grab breakfast at one of our favorite restaurants & to take family pictures for our Christmas card. Major props to them for ensuring that I would actually get ready, wear something cute, & be ready to go earlier than usual (also major props to them for covering their tracks all week, as I later discovered that Nick had been carefully scheming with all 4 of my family members to perfect the proposal plan). Saturday morning rolled around & as we walked into the back entrance of Epcot, my mom asked me to go to the restroom with her. I thought it was a little bizarre considering we left the hotel approximately 7 minutes earlier, but obliged nonetheless. Once entering the park, Eric was waiting for us by a gift shop & mentioned that Dad & Ashley went ahead to get us a table. The Flower & Garden festival was going on & gorgeous flowers filled every nook & cranny of the park. Mom suggested we take a peak at the United Kingdom gardens since it wasn’t too hot & the park was empty. I agreed whole-heartedly. We wound around the street to get to the gardens & once the path began to straighten back out I saw Nick standing a few feet away with a huge smile across his face. I was shocked, immediately began to cry, & was whisked into the most fairytale-like whirlwind. I was basically just trying to function as Nick took my hand, leading me to a more private garden. I remember bits & pieces of what he said but I completely remember the look in his tear-filled eyes as he asked me to spend forever with him. It was a moment in time that I will never forget & already reminisce on. Celebrating with our families was absolutely perfect & I am so thankful that Nick’s parents & sister joined him for the journey down to Orlando. After the proposal, we enjoyed all the happiness that Disney has to offer & ended the best day ever with fireworks & ice cream at the Magic Kingdom. Talk about a dream come true! ;)”