(We met at a bike race, of course...) Lovestruck with mutual passion for a fringe-sport — it's a powerful icebreaker. But we really knew something special was brewing when we pulled out identical red-tinged Bodum french presses on race day morning ☕️Kismet! Fun fact: Suzanna friend-zoned Stephen for nearly an entire year! One beautiful spring morning, he came over and cooked her a delicious breakfast, and she decided right then and there to stop pretending she wasn't madly in love with him. It was the best decision of her life, made after the most important meal of the day. Needless to say, breakfast is now forever a non-negotiable part of the day in our family!

Stephen had the ring tucked in his jersey, surreptitiously looking for the perfect mid-ride spot among the gently rolling pastures. We came upon Maple View Creamery, a favorite ice cream shop set among a picturesque dairy, but for the first time in Suzanna's life, she said she "didn't feel" like ice cream. Undeterred (and impressively nonchalant), Stephen offered a savory alternative: wine, cheese, and baguette at Weaver Street Market. To his relief, Suzanna enthusiastically agreed. She's still not sure how he remained so "normal" while we took our sweet time perusing, taste-testing, and crafting the perfect picnic. He even mustered up some impressive small-talk when, as always, we ran into several friends and acquaintances. Finally, we settled with our Parisian picnic spread on the lawn in the epicenter (the true heart and soul!) of Suzanna's community. Before we knew it, the tasteful post-ride meal was a (mildly) public proposal, and moments after she said "oui", the wind kicked up, the sky turned purple, and we rushed inside just in time to avoid a small sprinkling of hail! This surprise southern spring storm lasted all of five minutes, the clouds cleared, and a beautiful sunset took its place. We decided this was a good sign.

Most people came to know Dr. Stephen Vogel as either: ① The very tall, handsome, soft-spoken fellow with a curiously large appetite and a penchant for crossword puzzles, food blogs, and playing the pipe organ or ② The faceless phenom cyclist who rides to the front of local group rides and bike races and single-handedly obliterates the field. After half of the group is dropped, gasping furiously for air, someone manages to utter: "Who WAS that?!" and someone else breathlessly croaks: "Vogel" This Clark Kent / Superman quality is one of my favorite things about Stephen. He is genuinely kind and also bitingly sharp-witted He is deeply empathetic and at times wisely indifferent He is quiet and assured and also restless and thrill-seeking He embraces routine but can't go long without adventure He is scrupulous and easy-going, often at the same time He is endlessly loving. Always. He helps me find center — each and every day. And yes, he regularly drops me when we ride bicycles together (but riding in his slipstream makes me faster!) 😉

Anyone who has known or even met Suzanna will agree that her soul radiates beauty. Hard to pinpoint at first, you soon realize that she gives out a sense of welcoming energy that draws you in with comfort, ease, and openness. She invites you to be exactly who you are but, makes you want to be even better than that. I'm still in awe of the connections she makes, watching her thrive with those friendships while giving so much to those she touches. She develops a following wherever she makes her mark, be it through the bike racing community, the massage clients she acts as physical (and emotional) healer for, or the demanding Silicon Valley cyclists who come in with as much bike-fit related injury as they do tech money. She doesn't give herself enough credit for her own brilliance. She creates such a high standard of expertise in whatever she does, often without even realizing it and sometimes at her own expense. She'll have a day full of work in 3 different jobs, but still proceed to spend her evening guiding me past a tough day, working with me to solve a problem, or planning the next phase of our immensely busy life together. She jokes that she's felt like she's been in her mid-thirties for her whole adult life. I laugh alongside her, knowing it's both true and false. She's long had to forge her own path of success, holding a level of responsibility and self awareness that most teenagers and twenty somethings couldn't manage (definitely not me!). But she has a youthful energy that just doesn't fit with someone settling into middle age. Suzanna is a beautiful person with a gorgeous soul. It impresses me beyond words. The lifetime I have to appreciate it by marrying her is the best gift she could ever give me (and she can give some pretty awesome gifts).