Lauren and Jared's love story is truly one that only God could orchestrate. It began at NRG stadium in the heart of Houston, Texas during the summer of 2019. Fresh out of the University of Texas at Austin, Jared was beginning his career with the Houston Texans, while Lauren was starting her summer internship.

With Lauren still having one more semester of undergrad at Clemson University in her home state of South Carolina, the last thing on her mind was seeking out a relationship, especially with a boy from Texas! This thought kind of wavered, however, when Lauren noticed a cute blue-eyed boy on her first day with the Texans. Despite frequent encounters in the halls of NRG, Jared didn’t seem to look her way… or at least make eye contact. Determined to learn more about this mysterious blue-eyed boy, Lauren discreetly inquired about him among their colleagues, discovering his name was Jared and that, surprisingly, he was single.

Fuelled by curiosity and a growing interest, Lauren orchestrated a plan to secure Jared's number, intending to invite him for after-work drinks under the guise of discussing career insights. As soon as Lauren texted Jared, he shot back a text within minutes saying he had been trying to get her number as well and was planning on reaching out to her (if you ain’t first, you’re last, Jared!). Nonetheless, Lauren beat him to the punch and proposed they meet up, to which Jared suggested dinner at Lauren’s now-favorite restaurant, Tiny's No. 5 in Rice Village.

Their first date was meant to be casual, yet their connection was anything but. Over dinner and Tiny's famous chocolate chip cookies, Lauren and Jared bonded instantly over their shared values—family, faith, and college football. What was supposed to be a quick dinner stretched into a three-hour conversation that continued as they strolled through the neighborhood of Rice Village, just chatting about life.

Due to the rigorous training camp schedule for an NFL team, Lauren and Jared only got to go to dinner once more before Lauren had to return to South Carolina. While Lauren loved getting to know and spend time with Jared over the course of the summer, she knew that the timing was off and it wasn’t going to work out (or so she thought). Despite the distance, Jared and Lauren continued to stay in touch throughout Lauren’s last semester at Clemson, which quickly turned into nightly calls discussing Jared’s day to day tasks with the Texans and Lauren’s last few college classes. Though uncertain about the practicality of a long-distance relationship, Lauren found herself eagerly anticipating each call, and Jared, equally smitten, couldn't imagine not pursuing what they had. He finally convinced her to visit for some Astros postseason baseball in October, to whichLauren excitedly agreed. That weekend, after a Jose Altuve walk off home run sent the Astros to the World Series, Jared officially asked Lauren to be his girlfriend.

Nearly four years later, Jared asked Lauren to be his wife while on a trip to La Jolla, California, a place that holds so much meaning for Lauren. During her junior year of college, Lauren medically withdrew from Clemson to attend treatment for Anorexia. Knowing this, Jared proposed in the same spot where Lauren would watch the sun set after long treatment days, creating a full circle moment and displaying the ultimate testament to God’s goodness and faithfulness.

On October 26, five years and a week after their relationship officially began, Lauren and Jared will commit their lives to each other in front of their closest family and friends in the city that God brought them together. Through three years of long distance dating, a worldwide pandemic, career changes, thousands of SouthWest points, countless cancelled departures in an attempt to spend more time together, fun times, sad times, and all of the little moments in between, Lauren and Jared’s story is one that, truly, only God could write and they cannot wait for this next chapter!

Registry

Please know that your presence and prayers are the greatest gifts we could ever receive. However, if you'd like to contribute a gift of congratulations as we celebrate the beginning of our life together, our registry can be found below!