Kayla
and
Matthew
Please join us for our wedding celebration on
Our Story
Kayla and I met in marching band, in the pit to be exact, the place that has all the xylophones and timpani and instruments that you can't march with. Neither of us were technically supposed to be there. I was in pit because they had nowhere for me to march on the field and Kayla wasn't able to march because of her legs. Although at the time we both wished to be anywhere else, the Universe had placed us there for a reason. After two seasons of playing in the pit we finally made the "friendship-ending decision" of going on a date... guess who asked who out? It was Kayla who asked me out! So we went on our first date, both of us were very nervous, get to the restaurant 3 hours early nervous, but once we sat down and started talking, that's when I knew she would be the one that I would spend the rest of my life with. Over a plate of biscuits and chicken & dumplings, we talked about everything and anything. In fact, we talked so long that the waitress stopped bringing us water and stood in the corner staring at us, but the conversation was flowing and how could you mess up a perfect date just because the waitress wanted us to leave. We went to the movies afterward, and saw "Unbreakable", Kayla screamed when the shark jumped into the boat, and the rest was history. After the date, I drove Kayla home, and when it came time for the kiss, it didn't happen. How stupid of me! I never made that mistake again! On our next date, we made it official, we actually became boyfriend and girlfriend and I got that first kiss!
We continued to date throughout my Senior year with Kayla becoming a stronger and stronger part of my life and our relationship growing. As we got closer to my graduation, people began to doubt if we would make it together. Well jokes on them! At the end of that year, I chose to attend Virginia Tech (go Hokies!) where I eventually earned both my Bachelor's degrees and a Master's degree. A year later Kayla would follow suit and pursue her degree as well. At Tech we began to strengthen our relationship even further, with late-night walks, milkshake runs, and long talks that would go on for hours. While at Tech Kayla's leg pain got worse, and after numerous doctors, tests galore, and a lot of back and forth it was determined that Kayla had compartment syndrome, a condition in which the chambers of the leg have too high pressure. The result was surgery. I remember being so nervous and worried for her as she went back for surgery, but I remained hopeful that the surgery would make her life easier. While in surgery Angie, Mike, Laura, and I waited in the waiting room, hoping the hours would pass by quicker. This, although not the first, is a memory that stands out to me as the point at which I became part of Kayla's family, a feeling that has remained constant ever since. A Chick-fil-A run with Laura and some Techno-Christmas music later Kayla was out of surgery. Next came the even harder part, Kayla having to learn to walk again, readjust to life on crutches, and getting back to normal. Kayla struggled but was determined! Nothing was going to keep her down, a quality I see in Kayla every day. Time passed, Kayla got stronger, was able to walk, and eventually was stronger than before. Unfortunately, this was the first of two surgeries, but in both cases, Kayla showed her strong and resilient side. During these times we grew closer together, both of us supporting the other through physical pain (both surgeries) and the emotional pain that college, work, and internships can be. But we got through it, we grew as people, as a couple, and came out the other side better for it.
I graduated in the Spring of 2019 and looked to graduate school. A big decision, but an even bigger decision when it involves someone you want to spend the rest of your life with. After a lot of back and forth, we decided the best thing was to wait a year and the two of us apply at the same time. A stressful Senior year for Kayla as well as the on-set on the COVID-19 pandemic put a damper on the end of Kayla's time as an undergraduate, but we made the best of it! We got to spend a lot of time together, watch an un-godly amount of reality TV, go on long walks, and most importantly talk about what we wanted from our lives. Although at this point I had known for a long time that Kayla was the person I wanted to spend my life with, we started to paint a portrait of our life together. We talked about politics, living styles, work, children, money, anything and everything. For most people, the Pandemic is what killed their relationship, but I think COVID-19 made Kayla and I's relationship flourish, which in my mind means it's meant to be. After all, if you can sit in a house for hours on end and put up with me then we're obviously meant to be together. As the months passed and the Pandemic "ended" we looked to Graduate School. I started at Tech (once a Hokie, always a Hokie) and Kayla started at Radford. We were pursuing what we wanted to do, and that was to help other people. Kayla wanted to help little kids as a Speech Pathologist and I wanted to help people connect with the Great Outdoors (whatever that means). Graduate school was a struggle. Long nights, tons of reading, assignments, and again lots of talks, walks, and growing together as a couple. A lot of people crack under pressure, but for Kayla and I, pressure has fused us together.
We both graduated, with flying colors I might add. Now, it was my turn to pop the quest. Kayla and I had talked about the best time to get married. If Kayla could have had it her way we would have been married years ago, but we decided to wait until we both finished Graduate School. Naturally, Kayla was ready and so was I! Almost every time I would bend down to tie my shoe, Kayla would gasp. I thought to myself, where is somewhere that means a lot to the both of us? The first thing that came to mind was Topsail Beach, a place that we visit every year and one of Kayla's favorite places in the world. I knew the location. Next was the ring. After months of searching, back and forth with jewelers, and nudges from Kayla, I was able to get the most perfect ring. A ring that was "simple but sophisticated" as Kayla likes to say. Next was to secretly get Kayla to the proposal. One thing about Kayla is that she loves surprises, but she also loves to figure out surprises, so I had to be very covert. With the help of her mom, dad, and sister we were able to pull off the perfect proposal at the southern tip of Topsail Island. And she said YES!
I say all this to let you know that Kayla and I have come a long way. 8 years. 8 years that have been full of change, 8 years in which the both of us have changed fundamentally as people, grown together, and began our careers. But in those 8 years, I have found the person I am going to spend the rest of my life with, the person I love more than anyone else, the person I look forward to waking up to every day, and the person I look forward to growing a family with. I couldn’t be happier!
From Kayla and I, thank you for all your well wishes, support, and love over the last 8 years. Here's to many, many, many more. We look forward to seeing you all in Raleigh in July to celebrate our love and the joining of our two families!
Matthew + Kayla,
We continued to date throughout my Senior year with Kayla becoming a stronger and stronger part of my life and our relationship growing. As we got closer to my graduation, people began to doubt if we would make it together. Well jokes on them! At the end of that year, I chose to attend Virginia Tech (go Hokies!) where I eventually earned both my Bachelor's degrees and a Master's degree. A year later Kayla would follow suit and pursue her degree as well. At Tech we began to strengthen our relationship even further, with late-night walks, milkshake runs, and long talks that would go on for hours. While at Tech Kayla's leg pain got worse, and after numerous doctors, tests galore, and a lot of back and forth it was determined that Kayla had compartment syndrome, a condition in which the chambers of the leg have too high pressure. The result was surgery. I remember being so nervous and worried for her as she went back for surgery, but I remained hopeful that the surgery would make her life easier. While in surgery Angie, Mike, Laura, and I waited in the waiting room, hoping the hours would pass by quicker. This, although not the first, is a memory that stands out to me as the point at which I became part of Kayla's family, a feeling that has remained constant ever since. A Chick-fil-A run with Laura and some Techno-Christmas music later Kayla was out of surgery. Next came the even harder part, Kayla having to learn to walk again, readjust to life on crutches, and getting back to normal. Kayla struggled but was determined! Nothing was going to keep her down, a quality I see in Kayla every day. Time passed, Kayla got stronger, was able to walk, and eventually was stronger than before. Unfortunately, this was the first of two surgeries, but in both cases, Kayla showed her strong and resilient side. During these times we grew closer together, both of us supporting the other through physical pain (both surgeries) and the emotional pain that college, work, and internships can be. But we got through it, we grew as people, as a couple, and came out the other side better for it.
I graduated in the Spring of 2019 and looked to graduate school. A big decision, but an even bigger decision when it involves someone you want to spend the rest of your life with. After a lot of back and forth, we decided the best thing was to wait a year and the two of us apply at the same time. A stressful Senior year for Kayla as well as the on-set on the COVID-19 pandemic put a damper on the end of Kayla's time as an undergraduate, but we made the best of it! We got to spend a lot of time together, watch an un-godly amount of reality TV, go on long walks, and most importantly talk about what we wanted from our lives. Although at this point I had known for a long time that Kayla was the person I wanted to spend my life with, we started to paint a portrait of our life together. We talked about politics, living styles, work, children, money, anything and everything. For most people, the Pandemic is what killed their relationship, but I think COVID-19 made Kayla and I's relationship flourish, which in my mind means it's meant to be. After all, if you can sit in a house for hours on end and put up with me then we're obviously meant to be together. As the months passed and the Pandemic "ended" we looked to Graduate School. I started at Tech (once a Hokie, always a Hokie) and Kayla started at Radford. We were pursuing what we wanted to do, and that was to help other people. Kayla wanted to help little kids as a Speech Pathologist and I wanted to help people connect with the Great Outdoors (whatever that means). Graduate school was a struggle. Long nights, tons of reading, assignments, and again lots of talks, walks, and growing together as a couple. A lot of people crack under pressure, but for Kayla and I, pressure has fused us together.
We both graduated, with flying colors I might add. Now, it was my turn to pop the quest. Kayla and I had talked about the best time to get married. If Kayla could have had it her way we would have been married years ago, but we decided to wait until we both finished Graduate School. Naturally, Kayla was ready and so was I! Almost every time I would bend down to tie my shoe, Kayla would gasp. I thought to myself, where is somewhere that means a lot to the both of us? The first thing that came to mind was Topsail Beach, a place that we visit every year and one of Kayla's favorite places in the world. I knew the location. Next was the ring. After months of searching, back and forth with jewelers, and nudges from Kayla, I was able to get the most perfect ring. A ring that was "simple but sophisticated" as Kayla likes to say. Next was to secretly get Kayla to the proposal. One thing about Kayla is that she loves surprises, but she also loves to figure out surprises, so I had to be very covert. With the help of her mom, dad, and sister we were able to pull off the perfect proposal at the southern tip of Topsail Island. And she said YES!
I say all this to let you know that Kayla and I have come a long way. 8 years. 8 years that have been full of change, 8 years in which the both of us have changed fundamentally as people, grown together, and began our careers. But in those 8 years, I have found the person I am going to spend the rest of my life with, the person I love more than anyone else, the person I look forward to waking up to every day, and the person I look forward to growing a family with. I couldn’t be happier!
From Kayla and I, thank you for all your well wishes, support, and love over the last 8 years. Here's to many, many, many more. We look forward to seeing you all in Raleigh in July to celebrate our love and the joining of our two families!
Matthew + Kayla,