Kyle and Lauren have been on nearly-crossing paths for years. Kyle’s aunt used to host Lauren for weekly Fremd High School prayer group. Lauren’s high school small group leader was Kyle’s cousin. They went to the same church and same chiropractor throughout their entire childhood. And Kyle had been noticing Lauren during her visits to Mission Church with her family for years. They even randomly saw each other at a Costco once. Kyle wanted to say hi, but Lauren ran away (literally) with her niece in tow. Their paths didn't officially cross until late last year.
Like all excellent millennial relationships, their very first contact came via Facebook messenger, which was facilitated by Lauren's sister, Nicole. Lauren and Kyle shared disheartened banter about how bad the Bears were, and that eventually transformed into a burgeoning interest in who each other was on a deeper level. It would become clear later that Nicole had been a behind-the-scenes advocate for them getting together for quite some time. Turns out, she was on to something...
They finally met in person when they both randomly showed up to a fundraiser event in the suburbs. They said 'hi,' but Lauren initially thought Kyle was interested in her friend, Katie, instead of her. He persisted and successfully won some brownie points by spending time talking to her mom about raffle ticket strategies. The raffle strategy didn't pay off, but he ended up getting the girl anyway.
Their first (unofficial) date was to the beacon of joy that is known as Woodfield Mall. Kyle got his i-phone glass repaired at a questionable kiosk. Lauren returned a number of fashionable clothing items to department stores (per the usual). Their conversation was witty and it felt like they were the only two people in the entire mall. (For the record, Lauren hates this part of the story because she hates Woodfield Mall...or any mall for that matter.)
Their (official) first date was picking apples at an apple orchard. Which of course means they bought bags of pre-picked apples and ate apple cider donuts. And, as it turns out, Lauren is quite good at predicting the winners of pig races. She beat Kyle's picks in a landslide and he lost the bet to cook her an apple-themed dinner. To this date, he has still yet to deliver said dinner.
Early on in their relationship, Kyle and Lauren faced a very important question: is it too soon to be taking each other as "plus 1's" to all these weddings we have coming up? The relationship was super new, and it wasn't clear yet if they should be jumping in feet first into an environment that might not be ideal for a 4th date. Taking Lauren's lead, they went for it. They attended 3 weddings on 3 consecutive weekends. That meant meeting tons of friends and family, getting all fancy-pants, and everything else that goes into attending a wedding together. And, as it turned out, Lauren officially fell in love that wedding month...with Kyle's pretty great dance moves.
The exact date Kyle knew he was going to marry Lauren was marked by a simple text. He was eating a steak from a plastic cup while camping with cousins when she officially stole his heart by sending him an "I Miss You" gif of Will Farrell crying into a wine glass. It was a hilarious yet tender moment that warmed his heart. Lauren would later reveal to Kyle that that same day, she was having a conversation with her mom and told her that she knew she was going to marry Kyle as well. It's clear that God was moving strongly in their relationship on that Fall Friday.
After Lauren found out she had to fly to Paris for work, and asked Kyle to join her, Kyle knew that he couldn't pass up the opportunity to propose in the most romantic city in the world. After months of secretly preparing , Kyle ended up getting a cute little cafe to open up after hours just for the two of them. With God opening doors and plenty of help from friends, family, and Parisian co-workers (thanks, Harmonie!), Lauren was shocked and surprised when Kyle dropped to one knee to propose. It was one of the wildest, most special moment of their lives, and a part of their story that they'll cherish forever. (And if you know Lauren, you know that she's impossible to surprise...)
Lauren and Kyle feel grateful that God has worked in their stories in powerful ways to bring them together. Although it's been a whirlwind since the day they met (yes, it's been less than a year), both have felt an overwhelming peace that this is the story God has been and will continue to write in their lives. They can't wait to get married and become husband & wife, partners in crime for the Kingdom. Ecclesiastes 4:12