An Unlikely Meeting

Thanks Zach!

Lindsay: A lot of people wonder how we even met. I lived in Alaska, Tim lived in Minnesota. But one fateful trip back, we crossed paths. Specifically, we crossed paths due to Tinder and my friend Zach’s swiping. The next morning, I had to slowly start telling all my matches that I wasn’t actually interested in going out, I lived in Alaska and wasn’t moving, blah blah blah (yes, I know, ridiculously over the top for the forum but I can’t help it! It’s like saying hi to every stranger on the street I pass!) But somehow, for whatever reason, I just couldn’t get rid of Tim. I kept telling him that there was no point in talking… yet we kept on talking.

Tim: Lindsay was very clear from the outset that she lived in Alaska, and was not moving. I was very clear that that was ok, she was just fun to talk to. The day before she left to go back home, we had our first date. Our first date was good, but I was new to dating and I was incredibly awkward at the end...not sure if we should hug, kiss, shake hands. So it ended with an awkward hug.

Lindsay: Shake hands… seriously, that’s how awkward he was. I thought, surely, this guy is not interested. After the date, I went directly to dinner with my parents and grandma, where my mom mouthed across the table, “how was it?” I said that Tim is a really good human being and I didn’t expect to ever see him again. And then he kept texting.

California

Our first trip

Tim: We talked on the phone every night from then on out. We even had our second date over Skype. Lindsay soon asked if I would meet her in California for a weekend. Originally, I said yes...but didn't really mean it, it was more of a "Yeah sure, that will happen someday.” I was very nervous about it...going off to meet a girl in California is not something I would normally do.

Lindsay: I was not about to be “yeah sure’d.” I meant it. We spent HOURS talking and I still wasn’t quite sure what we were doing or why. I couldn’t seem to stop but I am also not the type to waste my time. So, I figured we should meet. Then this fantasy land we were living in would pop, we would stop talking, and we would move on with our lives! Or, maybe it would end up being “move good” but how likely was that?

Tim: Ultimately I realized I was being an idiot and agreed to go, and we met up in Sacramento - where we had our third date at the Shady Lady and began our first roadtrip, one of many to come. We spent 5 days together in California and drove from Sacramento to the Redwoods. We had no plans of where to stay or what to do when we got there. It was the journey that mattered. We hiked in the woods, stayed at random motels, and began to fall in love. I knew this was the case when - while trying to break-and-enter into an abandoned amusement park - Lindsay said "Pull over, I have to pee!" And right there, in Guerneville...she peed on the side of the road. This was something special.

Lindsay: For the record, after driving for HOURS to get to that abandoned amusement park, Tim chickened out. Also, I went home terrified - it was “move good.”

Washington D.C.

The best day ever

Tim: Two weeks after California, we both found ourselves on the East coast for work. I was in Connecticut, and Lindsay in D.C. for some consulting work. I met her down in DC for 2 days before my flight left. The story of D.C. itself is incredibly long, suffice to say neither of us are big fans of D.C., but...it was the best day ever. We spent the whole day walking, talking, and bribing security guards to let us in the already-closed parking garage to get our car.

Lindsay: It’s really hard to keep track of your car when you’re falling in love! At the end of that wonderful day, I texted a selfie of us to Rebekah and Zach with an exclamation of how I was going to marry this man and it was all due to Zach.

Long Distance Dating

Tim: And so began long distance dating. Neither of us knew what we were getting into, except that we would be travelling. A lot. Between our D.C. trip and the move 10 months later, we saw each other at least every month. This is something like 35,000 miles travelled over 10 months. Long distance relationships aren't easy, but as two young professionals who travel for work frequently, we developed a lot of good skills to maintain a relationship while travelling. Frequent phone calls, lots of Facetime, falling asleep while on the phone, and the ability to perfectly sync a movie.

Lindsay: We did practical stuff too, like me coming and staying at Tim’s house in Oakdale to envision if I could really imagine moving my life back to the suburbs of Minnesota (spoiler: I couldn’t). But eventually it got to the point that I also couldn’t stand being apart long distance either. So, I basically blame Tim for ruining both states for me.

Tim: The first time Lindsay met Cadence and Quinn, the girls had invited her over to watch a Vikings game with us…but really they just showed her every single toy they owned. Lindsay immediately did great with them. Jumping into parenting two kids is not easy, but Lindsay was able to connect on a level I am not capable of with both girls.

Lindsay: I used to have a rule – no dating guys with kids. Mostly because I’m incredibly opinionated! I thought it would be much too difficult to get involved with someone else’s kids. I’m so glad I broke my rule for Tim, though. He’s a great father and both he and the girls have welcomed me into their family in a pretty amazing way.

The Move

Lindsay: Eventually one of my two loves – Tim or Alaska – had to go. I chose Tim. We embarked on a nine day road trip from Alaska to my new (/old) home in Minnesota. The amazingness of our trip can't be adequately captured, in either words or pictures. Amazing views, sleeping in the car, closed campgrounds, weird shower places, snow. Learning new things about each other, seeing Tim's border crossing nerves, Uhaul and mattress troubleshooting, lots and lots of donuts. Hot Springs in the complete dark, with northern lights and millions of twinkling stars in the sky. Bears and buffalo, wolves and fox, mountain goats, horses, cows, ptarmigan, hawks and eagles, mice, moose and caribou. Archie's first experience in the lower 48, not quite understanding corn fields. A funeral for Snuggly the Fish, who didn't make it. Hours and hours of talking, yet it somehow wasn't enough.

The Engagement

Tim: Fast forward 8 months, Lindsay had to go to New Orleans for consulting work and we decided I should go with and make a long weekend out of it. I had decided this would be the place to ask her to marry me. She been obsessing about an old southern oak tree just outside of the Audobon Zoo that we could climb and look at giraffes…I knew this was going to be the perfect place. We had decided to slowly make it to the tree, enjoying our day as we went. But before we even left the hotel, I hear Lindsay shout from the room “Babe! Our house!” A house was for sale, FINALLY, in the neighborhood we wanted, and with the layout we wanted. As excited as I was for the house, I was keeping my sights on the important plans I had for the day. And this house coming on the market made it seem almost impossible to get Lindsay to the tree. On the final stretch of the walk there we decided to make an offer on the house, but more importantly, we made it. And there…under the Tree of Life, I asked her to marry me.

Lindsay: Our wedding was planned for February 2020, a perfect month to get married in the snow. Our plans changed a bit when we found out that Baby Girl Culverhouse will be joining us in March, a few months earlier than anticipated. So here we are, about to say “I do” and live happily ever after. I love this man, and can’t wait to spend the rest of my life adventuring with him.