Full names: Mike and Megan Traxel (Grunder)

Hometowns: Mike — Johnston, Iowa; Megan — Mount Vernon, Iowa

Degrees/current jobs: Mike will graduate from Iowa State this December with a degree in biochemistry. He currently works for Colorbiotics in Ames. Megan will graduate in May of 2013 with a degree in kinesiology and health, pre-physicians assistant. She currently works as a teacher’s assistant for Com S 103.

How did they meet? Mike and Megan met in Friley Hall in 2009. They had a class together the following semester and really started to get to know each other that spring.

Where did they go on their first date? Mike and Megan kept their relationship very low key. Their first date was to the movie “The Book of Eli” at the Dollar Theater, dinner at Wendy’s, followed by attending a Campus Crusade for Christ meeting.

How did they get engaged? Last spring, Mike was planning to switch Megan’s purity ring for her wedding ring during a movie they were attending so she would have to freak out quietly. The movie ended up being a flop, so Mike had to work on the fly. Mike blindfolded Megan and took her to Brookside Park where he proposed to her in the snow.

“When I opened my eyes and saw an engagement ring, I burst into excited tears. All he could do was smile and laugh,” Megan recalled.

When and where was their wedding? Mike and Megan got married at Community Bible Church in Mount Vernon, the church Megan attended throughout high school. It was on Aug. 13.

What were their colors? Teal and orange

What flowers did they have? Orange gerbera daisies, orange roses and lilies

How large was the wedding? 250 to 300 guests

What did they do for the reception? Megan and Mike had a very simple cake-and-punch reception with a candy buffet.

“My neighbor growing up owns a bakery and designed our cake and surprised us with it,” Megan said.

Mike and Megan also had a photo booth run by a friend who is a photography student. Photos of guests were taken using props Megan had collected.

They also played a photo slide show that began with their grandparents’ and parents’ wedding pictures to show the uniting of their families becoming one.

What was your something “old, new, borrowed and blue”?

“Old was the purity ring from my dad, which we used as the wedding band. New was my dress. Borrowed was the veil that my close friends wore in their weddings. Blue was my teal, four-inch heels that I found online and matched the bridesmaids’ dresses perfectly.”