Family & friends, What a year! As most of you are aware, last year when our wedding plans were derailed at the height of the spring COVID lockdown, we made the decision to go ahead and get married anyway. But we missed all of you, and since this is such a unique occasion that can bring both of our families together we want to have a larger celebration! We thought about waiting it out until we could do so with any number of unmasked guests we would like, but in light of Garrett starting his preliminary year of residency & us moving to Cincinnati, Ohio this summer we need to go ahead and gather. Some notes on COVID (rules of the venue) - We will be limited on the number of people in attendance to 100 - Masks will be required unless seated at your table - The venue's HVAC system has been updated with new HEPA filters & are set to reduce or eliminate recycled air We are trying to have the most fun (and safe) celebration, and really hope you can join us!

Our story actually starts back in 2007 at CU-Boulder. Shortly after Shane attended a benefit concert that Garrett performed in, he saw Garrett on an LGBTQ social media platform and (after building up some courage) reached out. They had a very brief conversation, but at the time Garrett did not show much interest. Fast forward to January 2014, Garrett saw Shane on an online dating site and this time it was Garrett that needed to build up the courage to initiate the conversation. Of course, Shane remembered the previous attempted connection but decided to go on a first date anyway.

Garrett proposed to Shane on our trip to Croatia & Slovenia in the summer of 2017. But to set the scene: Shane knew this was coming. The. Whole. Time. Starting before the trip was even planned. When Garrett was so insistent that we make this trip, despite it being our most financially stressed time (after Shane's year-long unpaid dietetic internship and just before Garrett started medical school) Shane knew something was up. Then, as we packed Shane found the rings when he dumped out Garrett's old Camelback, so he shoved everything back inside and handed it to Garrett requesting that he "clean out his bag so we can get it packed." As we travelled through Croatia & Slovenia, Garrett had been planning to propose at our lunch reservation at the restaurant at Bled Castle, a magical castle on a cliff overlooking a beautiful lake. However, an obnoxious American couple and their children never stopped talking to us...so the mood was ruined and it didn't happen there. Instead, he proposed near the end of our trip on the island of Korčula. We spent the day exploring the old town, going to the beach, visiting a winery for a private tasting, and then ate dinner watching the sunset over the Adriatic Sea while a nearby boat partied and played live polka music. Immediately after dinner they went up into the city walls and Garrett proposed in a small nook overlooking the view. (Shane initially said no, but not in an "I don't want to" sort of way, more of an "I'm really awkward and trying to joke at a very inopportune time" sort of way). The rest, as they say, is history.

After realizing that our wedding would have to be shut down due to COVID, we came to the conclusion that it made the most sense for us to get married anyway - in part because Garrett will be graduating medical school this year and since he was taking Shane's last name it made the most sense to do all of that before graduation & licensing happened. All of our plans were thrown out the window, but we still wanted a special ceremony. Restricted to groups of 10 at the time, this meant only 7 guests and our officiant (which was fortunately one of Garrett's best friends, Natalie). Fortunately, this small group and new back-yard venue made it possible to make a last-minute change of date since our original date had a severe rain/thunderstorm all day long. So with only our parents and sisters by our side, and a group of last-minute Zoom attendees, we had the most beautiful ceremony and delicious food & drinks together. While it was as perfect as a COVID wedding could be, we missed SO many people. Which is where 2021 & you will come in for Part 2.