I vividly remember the day I met my beautiful bride-to-be, my (sometimes) sweet Kaykay. It is a picture in my mind that I still to this day see as clearly as the moment it happened. It was an absolute whirlwind of a day, but I can confidently say now that it was the best day of my life, because it was the day that I met the love of my life and guaranteed my own happiness for the rest of my days.
I am sure a lot of people know the story of when we first met, so I won’t go into too many details. I was on my way to Prague, and had just gotten through security when I saw another girl that I knew that was going on the trip, so I stopped to say hello. She mentioned that she was flying with a group of five girls. My first thought was to get away because I did not want to fly across the Atlantic Ocean with five college girls. However, not wanting to be rude, I stuck around. That turned out to be the best decision I have ever made.
This girl dressed in all black comes bouncing up to me. I had never met or seen her before, but instantly felt some sort of tether to her. It is tough to explain, it is not like we immediately fell head over heels for each other, but I certainly believe we both felt SOMETHING. She was loud, she talked a lot, was a bit pushy, but I just could not stay away from her. We got stuck in the Paris airport for what seemed like days, and that is where we got to know each other more, and after that point, we were basically inseparable.
We had the time of our lives in Prague, some of the best in both of our lives. I stayed in Europe for around 2 weeks after she left, just hopping around. I saw so many cool things and went to some incredible places, but I just felt a little off. Every day, the thing I looked forward to most was finding a place to connect to Wi-Fi so that I could text Kayla. She took up so much real estate in my brain during that time even after knowing her for only two months that I just knew that we had something special.
We got back to Auburn, officially started dating, graduated, got jobs, moved to Chicago, got engaged, are moving to Atlanta, and are getting married and starting the rest of our lives together. It feels like we have already been through so much together, and it hasn’t always been the easiest journey, but I have never questioned if Kayla is the one for me.
We have so many great memories together, from the time we laid on the Venice cobblestone looking at the sky to me telling her I loved her for the first time behind Quixotes after Auburn lost the Iron Bowl. The list could go on and on, and I can’t wait to create many many more memories together for the rest of our lives.
I feel like I keep saying the word “together,“ and I feel as if that is such an important word in relationships. Usually, it just means being in the company of someone else, but I feel like the true meaning runs deeper than that. I think there is an unconditional aspect to the word that is so critical, and I know that I share that with Kayla no matter what happens. We have each other’s backs always, and we are always on the other's team. In a similar vein, there is also a reliance factor to being together; I know I can always count on Kayla to be there for me when I need her, and I rely on her so much even just in my daily life. When I am feeling any sort of negative emotion of anything, she always knows how to brighten my mood up. Together, we are both better, we are both more complete, and I know that together we can do anything in the world, and I can’t wait to be together forever.
Most of you reading this probably know Kayla quite well, and know that she can be a bit of a handful. Even with that being said, there are so many positive adjectives I can use to describe Kayla. She is absolutely hilarious, one of the funniest people I have ever met. She is the most beautiful girl in the world, I cannot wait to see her in white. Kayla is incredibly strong, she has been through a lot of tough times but has always come out the other side smiling. Most importantly, she has the biggest heart of anyone I have ever met, and everything that she feels, she feels to the absolute maximum. That is one of the things I love most about her; what you see is exactly what you get. Even though sometimes that can get the best of her, I always know that I am seeing her true self. In my eyes, that true self is perfect in every way, and I am the luckiest person in the world because one day very soon I will get to call her my wife. I love you infinity. KG forever.
One of my favorite parts about our love story is how we met. At the end of my Junior year of college, I decided to take a leap of faith and go abroad for the summer to intern in Prague, Czech Republic.
After walking through security at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport with some of the girls I knew going on the trip, I made eye contact with a tall, handsome man - Grant. He was wearing an Auburn University shirt so I was automatically happy knowing that he would be on our trip. To say it was love at first sight may be a little crazy, but I felt a strong connection to him right off the bat. So much so that I soon started asking the girls who he was and calling dibs on him. Embarrassing, I know.
We had a flight from Atlanta to Paris and then Paris to Prague. Once we landed in Paris, we had already missed our connector. Since we were stuck at the Paris airport for 10 hours, I thought I’d have some fun with it. Grant was minding his business watching an episode of Game of Thrones on his iPad, but I kept badgering him with questions. Where are you from? What’s your major? My personal favorite… Do you have a girlfriend?! I could tell he was a little on the shy side, but deep down I had a desire to get to know him.
As our time spent abroad continued, we would find “secret” bars to meet at after work, travel to different cities in Europe, talk constantly, and eventually became inseparable. We were living a European fairytale, but I knew it wouldn’t just be for the summer. I can’t explain it, but I just knew in my heart that I had found the one I would spend the rest of my life with.
I was praying for this trip before it happened. Every day I would pray to only focus on growing in my independence and becoming more cultured, not on things that wouldn’t be worth my time. I had also been praying for the right man someday, but not anytime soon. I blatantly asked God to not bring a man into my life at all in any capacity if he wasn't the one for me. If we didn't miss that flight, I think things would have been a little different, but I believe God would have found a way to for us to end up together. After searching for all the wrong people, that was all I needed to know that he was the one. I had finally let go and let God work in my personal life, and it has paid off tremendously.
Ever since we got back from Prague, we’ve continued our adventure together for the past 3 years. We spent our last year at Auburn University together, moved to Chicago, traveled the world, raised a puppy, challenged each other, made a million memories, got engaged, and now we're PLANNING A WEDDING. Although our life together is always exciting and never dull, the best part is our hearts are calm, happy, and loved.
Every single morning I wake up and feel overwhelmingly thankful for this man. The man that I always knew deep down I deserved but never thought I'd find. The man who continuously lifts me up and would never put me down. The man who forgives and understands even when I can be irrational. The man who knows each and every part of me, even the parts I don't like, and still loves me just the same. How Grant loves me says a lot about him as a person, and I'm lucky enough that this amazing person is mine forever.
Although Grant isn’t the exact type of person I thought I would end up with, he is one thousand times better. He is patient, kind, ridiculously smart, trustworthy, strong, loving, thoughtful, fascinating, and understanding. Not to mention, he's extremely good looking and has a dang good jawline. In all honesty, there aren't enough words to describe my love for him, but thankfully I have forever to tell him how I feel.
Everything is better with him and I can’t wait to evolve every single day together, forever. See you at the altar, Grantie. I love you with my whole heart and I can’t wait to call you my husband.