Let's just say it was not love at first sight. We first met (briefly) in our mid 20s, after we were both out of college, through a mutual friend. A couple years later we went on one random date that didn't go anywhere because we were both currently living out of state. Fast forward two more years, when we both came back to PA, and Carly's sister and brother-in-law were pushing us to try again. This led to us dating for 6 months, breaking up for 6 months, then getting together for good, once Will got his mind right (lol)! Will proposed on his birthday and we were married less then a year later in Carly's grandparent's backyard.

Our everyday life consists of Will working outside of the home, as the executive pastor of our church, and Carly staying at home with our daughter. Even though Will works M-F, his schedule is pretty flexible and his office is literally two minutes down the road. Carly's days usually involve morning cartoons, playdates with friends, the library, a playground, or the community pool, and lots of grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup! We host our weekly church community group and we see friends and family often throughout the week and especially on the weekends. We still enjoy the occasional date night and our daughter loves going out for ice cream.

Will is an extreme extrovert! He's very social, while also having a logical, realist, type A personality (a rare blend). He takes a rather aggressive approach to life, always striving to conquer the next goal and accomplish all the tasks on his plate. He graduated from Penn State as a mechanical engineer and worked in that field for 12 years before God called him into ministry. He's a very loving and reliable husband and father. He takes his job as a pastor very seriously, yet takes time to enjoy all the simple pleasures in life. He likes to stay physically active through hiking, sports, and working out at the gym, but hunting is his main passion. He takes a trip out west to shoot 'big game' every fall. And representative of his mindset to all things in life, even if they come back empty handed, the joy was in the journey!

Carly has a warm and friendly personality. She is gifted with hospitality and musical ability. Her sister calls her, "the hostess with the mostest"! She can play the guitar, a little piano, and loves to sing and write songs. Her parents and grandparents (on both sides) have always served musically in the church, so it's always been a part of her life. Though she's a stay at home mom now, she's worked a variety of jobs including therapeutic support for children with autism and other learning or behavioral delays. She attended IUP, majoring in child development/family relations, a degree she is using everyday as a wife and mother. Her naturally laid-back attitude helps with the spontaneity and chaos of this current life stage. When not directly caring for Eliza, she enjoys time with friends as well as walking, gardening, cooking, and taking on paint jobs (home interior) with her dad.

All of our parents are alive and well and both couples have been married for over 40 years! They both live within 40 minutes of our house, so we see them often. Carly has a lot of extended family in the area and we get together with them for holiday's, birthday's, and other random events. Will's extended family is more spread out, but we still see the ones who are nearby. We are both the middle children of our families, each having an older and younger sister. While we love them all, we are particularly close (both in physical distance and relationally) with Carly's younger sister and brother-in-law and see them multiple times in a week.

 

We live almost an hour outside of the city in a friendly little neighborhood. It's very quiet and peaceful, yet we are 5 minutes away from everything (groceries, gym, school, hospital, and church). We've only been in our new home for about a year and so far, we absolutely love it! It's a 3 bedroom, 2 bath, ranch style house and it's perfect for our family. Our home has a very open floor plan which makes it easy to keep an eye on our daughter. We have a covered back patio and a huge treehouse, with a slide and swings, in the middle of the yard (which is 2 acres), great for entertaining and playdates.