How did we meet you ask? Well, we're in our mid-thirties and it's 2021. We met online, of course, and a three and a half hour lunch later a spark was lit! Over the ensuing weeks, months and almost 3 years, we shared countless adventures and experiences. We went to Disney! Can you believe it? In fact, Matt's Disney exposure has grown by about 1400%. In turn, Clare has learned how to stand in the infield at the Kentucky Derby during thunderstorms because Matt says "it's fun". You can be the judge. Our love is built on shared experiences, family and friends, similar vision, travel, laughing, support and encouragement. We're lucky to be two people who are passionate about what we believe, but not so serious that our differences can't be put aside. We've grown together as we both look to get the most out of life and out of each other. We push each other to try new things and out of comfort zones. We otherwise both have a lot of fun at concerts, sports games, trivia with friends and whatever else keeps us moving. We've experienced a lot of fun and growth the past 3 years. We look forward to decades more.

Anyone who knows Clare knows that the most likely location of her engagement would be somewhere on Disney property. So how in the world did she get engaged at SIOP, her professional conference? Because Matt is a sweetheart (despite what he likes to say). Now, if you know Matt, you understand that any obvious days (holidays) or settings (Disney) are not an option. Matt wanted to be sure Clare was completely surprised by the proposal. Clare's friends and family are scattered all across the United States which makes it hard to see them on a regular basis, let alone several of them at the same time. But every April she can count on seeing several of her friends from graduate school at her annual conference. So in April 2019, Matt flew into Washington, D.C. to join Clare at SIOP. We had a quiet dinner together, a ferris wheel ride with views of the capitol and eventually Clare quit rambling on long enough to give Matt the opportunity to pop the question. Three weeks later, she decided Yes! Just kidding, she couldn't put the ring on fast enough. Immediately after we were engaged, we attended a party that brings her grad school friends, current colleagues, current and past students together. We basically hijacked the BGSU entertainment budget to throw us an engagement party in D.C. All future conferences have a lot to live up to!!

We had big plans for our wedding and were extremely excited to see you all last summer. But 2020 brought unprecedented challenges. The last thing we wanted was to put family and friends in danger, so we made the hard decision to post-pone our big celebration. However, we were determined to not let COVID stop our wedding. We got married on July 18, 2020 surrounded by a small group of family and friends in Toledo. Now we look forward to celebrating our wedding with all of you in St. Louis!