Jenna (Maid of Honor)

Anna’s Perspective
I guess I have Chapman University to thank for leading me to TWO loves of my life because Jenna and I were absolutely meant to be best friends. She was the first person I told when I started to “like” Cole and she has been by my side through all of life’s moments ever since - the good, the bad, the big, the small, and everything in between. Suffice to say she is our all-time favorite third wheel and truly a best friend to us both. I could not get through life without Jenna, and I never want to try.

Cole’s Perspective
If we had a dime for every time we asked Jenna to settle a debate or talk us off the ledge about something, we could probably afford a second reception. Jenna is the embodiment of a true friend: caring, loyal, and always by your side. I couldn’t imagine anyone else playing such a special role in our wedding.

Emily

Anna’s Perspective
There is no one in the world with a kinder heart or a more contagious laugh than my sweet Emi. Cousin and built-in best friend from day one, she has always been one-of-a-kind and the brightest light in any room she enters. EVERYONE deserves to have the kind of unconditional love and support that Emily gives so naturally to her friends and family. 

Cole’s Perspective
My escape room partner of choice, Emily is as sweet and warm as they come. To say she has a big heart would be the understatement of the century. I don’t know that I have ever seen anyone love, encourage, and protect another human being the way Emily does Anna, and therefore by extension, me. And boy do we love her back.

Ashley

Anna’s Perspective
Ashley loves to remind me every chance she gets that she still remembers the days she would hold me as a baby. It is one of the greatest fortunes of my life that Ashley has always been six years ahead, carving a path that I’d give anything to follow. I don't know what I would do without my effervescent cousin to lead me through life and keep me laughing so hard that grape juice comes out my nose (if you know, you know)!

Cole’s Perspective
Ashley was the first person in Anna’s extended family I told about my plans to propose, and I wouldn’t want it any other way. I don’t know if we’ll ever be able to repay her for the amount of love and wisdom she has already imparted to us. She and her husband Neil have been our role models not only as a couple, but now as parents with their beautiful son, James.

Amy

Anna’s Perspective
Amy and I have been bffs since birth. Blessed with the good fortune of growing up across the street from one another, she has been there with me through every stage of life and I'm so glad we've grown even closer in our adulthood. It’s a pretty cool thing to have someone in your life who ALWAYS answers “yes” when you ask, “remember when we [fill in the blank]?“Amy is one of the coolest and most authentic people I know.

Cole’s Perspective
Alright, I’ll be honest, I was a little intimidated when I first met Amy. She was cool, funky, and had known Anna for as long as I’d been alive. Luckily, she took pity on me and my ill-fitting pants (or whatever embarrassing thing I must have been wearing) and welcomed me right into the neighborhood. And, as it turned out, my fears dissipated instantly when I realized what a genuinely kind and compassionate person she was.

Sara

Anna’s Perspective
Sweet Sara is the Southern Belle turned social influencer everyone dreams of being related to but is also secretly super jealous of. In all seriousness, she's been more like a sister than a cousin to me my entire life and is someone I know I can rely on through anything and everything. She is incredibly easy to talk to, funny as hell, and willing to do anything to support the people she loves.

Cole’s Perspective
SAWEEET Sara (bit of a difference in inflection there) is just a little ball of Texas sunshine who is also, to Anna’s point above, the epitome of a jetsetter. One minute, she’s launching a non-profit that now raises six figures a year. The next, she’s managing a social campaign that enlists A-List celebrities as influencers. At any given time, I have no clue where she is living. Nevertheless, she somehow still finds time to crack us up over the phone, and for that I am truly grateful!

Josh (Best Man)

Cole’s Perspective
Josh has been one of the most important people in my life since we were randomly grouped together for a freshman year high school project. For any of you who haven’t met Josh, let me break it down for you: lovable, goofy, supportive, endlessly kind - the easiest friend I’ve ever made. I think all of us are given a few select people in our lives with whom we connect more deeply than anyone else. Josh is one of those people for me. Asking him to stand by my side on my wedding day was a no-brainer.

Anna’s Perspective
Josh has been a best friend to me from the instant Cole introduced us. Somehow it feels like we’ve known each other our whole lives, and I am SO grateful for his unwavering ability to make Cole and I both laugh until we cry. Josh once casually told me I was “quail and manna from heaven” and of course I had to Google what that meant, but after I did, I definitely cried. 

Daniel

Cole’s Perspective
If there’s one lesson to be learned from my friendship with Daniel, it’s that nothing brings two high school boys together quite like a mutual love of Frasier. Daniel has played several roles in my life over the years: therapist, golf instructor, and gaming rival. I don’t think anyone makes me laugh harder than he does. Perhaps most importantly, he brought Liana, his wife, into our lives, who we both adore.

Anna’s Perspective
Fun fact: the proposal would not have happened as it did without our decoy plans with Daniel and Liana! How two best friends from Phoenix, AZ ended up with two girls from within a 10 mile radius in Orange County, CA, we may never know. But boy am I glad they did because the four of us have an absolute blast together.

Tosh

Cole’s Perspective
Tosh is one of of those friends you make that causes you to instantly regret not becoming friends with them sooner. Smart, engaging, and generous to a fault, Tosh brightens the day of everyone he encounters. He is also effortlessly cool, which, frankly, can get annoying. To sum it up: Style Goals, Intelligence Goals, and Beard Goals.

Anna’s Perspective
Tosh is one of the most intelligent and kind-hearted people I’ve ever met. Throughout our college years, he was always there when I needed him, whether that meant spending a whole night going through flashcards with me (for a class he wasn’t even in but somehow knew way more about) or helping me plot an epic birthday surprise for Cole. We stan our respectful, Canadian king!

Parker

Cole’s Perspective
Parker was one of the first friends I made in college and, for those of you who know him, I’m sure it’s not hard to see why. The only time his devilish charm and immense heart for people is not on display is when he’s chastising me for having not seen a classic movie.

Word of advice: try to keep him and Cooper apart as much as possible, or else they’ll start doing some sort of long-form bit that just never ends.

Another word of advice: look for him on the dance floor.

Anna’s Perspective
Always the first one to genuinely ask “How was your day?” or spontaneously whip out some Michael Jackson dance moves to cheer you up, Parker has always been easy to love and a welcome addition to any room. We have had some truly great times together, and I feel so fortunate that I lucked into having a friend like him in my life. 

Cooper

Cole’s Perspective
Cooper and Cole: A True Underdog Story

Cooper and I were first brought together by none other than the Chapman University Dorm Roommate Pairing Survey, a system that somehow paired the two of us together though our responses in each category (favorite hobbies, favorite music genres, etc.) must have looked exactly opposite. And though we may not have become immediate best friends that freshman year, our “old soul” tendencies seemingly bound us together. Cooper eventually became my roommate for all four years of college and one of the most important people to my college experience. Love you, bud.

Anna’s Perspective
One time when we were about 20 years old, Cooper decided to grow his hair out past his shoulders so he and I split the cost of a blow dryer to keep in the bathroom . . . Ah, the memories we’ve shared. Cooper is a fantastic listener, an incredibly loyal friend, and never one to part company without saying “Love you!!”