Like most adventures, you lose cell service the closer you are. We sent the final emojis and ETAs and then crossed our fingers.
Stormy clouds churned in the distance. The type of storms you worry over and send silent prayers upward as you feel the sudden hot breezes whip around you. But more than that, the type of storms you just know will create the most epic backdrops and gorgeous sunsets. With backpacks on and outfit changes slung carefully over our shoulders, we began the hike.
Within moments, you’re best friends as you climb and breathe heavy together. We stop for a pause – even though we shouldn’t need to based on the tiny distance traveled. Breathless laughs fill the air. The men scurry up on ahead, undaunted. And then everything changes. The views take any breath you had left and in that moment, nothing else matters.
It’s just us. Ready to tell your story. To be young and free and in love.
Individually, they are your new best friend.
Together, they’re a dynamic duo whose love is both inspiring and infectious.
Meet Britt & Chaz.
A couple who, upon seconds of meeting them, make you feel 10x happier than you were before. Full of life and the hilarious back and forth, “well then iiiiii thought,” type of storytelling, these two are the real deal. They’ve been through a lot together and so many long distance months sprinkled throughout their relationship. Individually, they are your new best friend. Together, they’re a dynamic duo whose love is both inspiring and infectious. And they’re untraditional love story, in their own words, is even better…Enjoy!
(If you’re on your desktop, listen while you scroll)
“Within moments of meeting her, I knew she was someone special. Her confidence, attitude, and brown eyes with flakes of gold utterly enchanted me. Meeting as ROTC cadets in our second year at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Brittney and I began our relationship as roommates. Our friendship grew over the countless hours spent together—the countless late-night conversations that lasted until the early morning.
Any reservations I might have had about dating someone I already lived with didn’t stand a chance against those brown eyes and adorable laugh…
“Within months of living together, we went on our first date. Shortly thereafter, I would ask her to be my girlfriend at the St. Louis Botanical Gardens; four years later, there I would ask her to be my wife. Brittney and I haven’t had a ‘traditional’ relationship. As I like to tell our friends, “we skipped some steps,” but if we could go back in time, I wouldn’t change a thing.
We’ve shared countless laughs and I am truly blessed to be the man to be by her side through life’s joys and challenges.”
“The moment I saw him I thought I knew him. I started just talking away like he was an old friend.
Looking back, I truly believe that the familiarity I felt that day means he had a piece of me from that first moment we saw each other. The crazy thing about our story is that we were roommates before we started dating. It just so happened that after that day of meeting him, my roommate would leave me behind with the entire rent. I frantically reached out to a friend (max) about becoming my roommate. The apartment was pretty large, and we needed another person. He suggested his friend Chaz. The man I met days prior…
“I did not go into the living situation with the intent to find love, but man did it find me.
Chaz and I hung out every day. We spent hours getting to know each other forming a deep friendship.
He eventually asked me on a date and of course I said yes. Just like the day he got down on one knee. The world works in the most mysterious of ways sometimes and there is so much beauty in that.
“With our wedding day rapidly approaching taking the time to reflect on where it all began has been so refreshing. It’s incredible to be reminded that love is a constant transition. I look back at the way I loved him at the beginning of our relationship. Falling fast as he spilled his life story, beliefs, and passions. Love changing over the years with depth, commitment and understanding. I truly fall more head over heals for him daily.
There are so many ways to love a person and the way Chaz and I love each other is by far my favorite.”
Dear Britt & Chaz —
From the moment we read your excited inquiry to sitting down with you over coffee and finding so much common ground with you two…man we love you guys! Thank you so much for all the adventures already. For trusting us. For being vulnerable. We can’t wait to celebrate with you guys in a few short months. And Chaz, while you’re away, we’ll take good care of your girl. We hope these memories remind and refresh you, even in the midst of distance. We’re so proud of you! Let’s do this! Always, –Tara & Stephen
Always,
–Tara M
