INTRODUCTIONS

BENJAMIN

First up, you have Benjamin! He is the strapping young founder of the group Amazon account to which so many of you owe your laundry detergent and kitchenware deliveries. If you aren’t a member, are you even really family? We kid. But definitely do inquire at the wedding. Anyway, he is also the Benjamin of the late-night dog walks, the Harry Potter marathons, the truly terrible latte art, and the various adventures (and misadventures) of the past eleven years. It is for these reasons, and not because he is safely inferior to Amanda at the game of Monopoly, that he will feature in the wedding.

AMANDA

Then you have Amanda! She is charming and not ever snarky. She is a maker of fine peanut sauce, a latte art connoisseur, and an all-around delight.

(She also shamelessly cropped her family out of this lovely pic to repurpose as a glamour shot.)

(If you squint really hard you might see Keela.)

THEODORE

And then there’s The-o-dore (pronunciation: "kumquat”)! He is baby butt, chief wiggle monster, and master of ceremonies. He will scream, squeal, and giggle.

BOUDREAUX

And finally you have Boudreaux. He is dog number one, master of the house, pants man, muffin butt, and wedding MVP. He will feature — prominently — in the wedding. He may be addressed by any of his aforementioned titles.

Zoe

And, oh wait, then there’s Zoe. We plucked her out of the woods and Boudreaux has regretted it ever since. She will bark — prominently — at the wedding. You may call her rat dog.

NOW THAT WE HAVE EACH OTHERS’ NAMES, LET’S INDULGE IN A LITTLE MEET-CUTE.

Ben and Amanda met at the end of college. Ben was the dude who sat next to Amanda in Game Theory. Amanda was the brains of the operation. (Though Ben was a quick study.) Together, they trudged through a 9:00 AM with Klaus Becker with nary a sideways glance.* Until the class — and Ben’s college career — were over.

Then, one fateful December evening, in a fit of twenty-first century angst over the fleeting nature of friendship when not preserved through proper channels, Amanda extended Ben The Facebook Friend Request. Ben, considering it a sign, pulled out his wittiest line:

He said: “Hey, long time no see.”

. . .

“How’s your winter break going?”

She said: “Pretty good.”

And launched into a story about Boudreaux, who had just made his grand entrance onto the scene.

And, whelp! Look at the time. My how it flies! Eleven wonderful years ensued. There were internships and long-distance calls, graduations and moves, dog adoptions and a home purchase. And, most recently, a tiny baby who turned the world upside down.

They learned to cook and learned to compromise. They became quarantine gardeners. They mastered a mad diaper change. Most importantly, they fell into a happy rhythm, leaning on each other through the ins and outs of life.

In the midst of it all, some wondered, “gee, will they or won’t they?” Others were all, “nah.” “Nope.” “Not a chance.” Certainly by around year four most had forgotten the matter.

But the most remarkable of things happen when no one is looking. One day Ben and Amanda took a step back and pondered, how could they make this thing they had even better? It turned out a wedding was in order.

And so here we are.

* True, she may have glanced sideways when he flashed his easy smile. And sure, he couldn’t help but notice her dazzling eyes. And yes, together they dominated Game Theory with an average test score of 108. But that was all platonic.