Our story began over the holidays in 2019 when we matched on Hinge. Maddie was in West Virginia, and Nick was in Minnesota, but plans were made to meet back in St. Louis in the new year at a favorite bar, Brennan’s. 

We connected over art and architecture and decided we had to explore the Saint Louis Art Museum on our second date. Since Maddie had studied the collection throughout college, we made a deal that she would act as a tour guide through the museum but that Nick would give a special presentation on Claude Monet’s 'Water Lilies.' Safe to say he “wowed” with his research!

We dated through the pandemic, and Forest Park became our second home. We spent many days dreaming of the future while wandering the park, chasing Lucy through the fields, and snuggling up in a hammock with a couple good books.

After Nick graduated, we began preparing to move to New York. One day, Nick suggested it’d be nice to revisit some of our favorite spots throughout St. Louis before we moved -- most importantly the museum. Since it was going to be kind of cold and gloomy that coming Saturday we decided it was the perfect day to go. We wandered around the museum for a couple hours, and as we were about to leave, Nick insisted we had to see the Water Lilies one last time. We turned the corner and were surprised to see that the painting was gone. As Maddie began searching for a plaque or something that would explain where it might be on display, Nick fumbled in his pocket for the ring...

We’re thrilled to return to St. Louis in May of 2024 to celebrate our wedding and spend time with friends and family in our beloved Forest Park.

x nick and maddie