Hunter likes to say that the most romantic thing about our story is that we met at all - that in a world where real connection takes real effort, we somehow found each other anyway.

Ellyssa likes to say that we just found each other on Bumble - Ellyssa freshly home from spending her COVID years in the Netherlands, Hunter just back from walking across Japan on a month-long pilgrimage. Two people mid-transition, each coming out of big changes and long relationships, somehow landing in the same place at the same time.

We fell into a love rooted in admiration and friendship - asking the big questions early, learning each other honestly, and discovering we wanted the same type of life and partnership. Adventurous and spontaneous, but practical at heart.

Getting married wasn't a grand romantic gesture. It was a logical, joyful conclusion - and a chance to gather the people we love most together while we still could.

That part felt urgent. And worth celebrating.

We are so lucky to have found each other - and even luckier to be surrounded by the people who made us ready for it.