Meet Sam! He's new to Sunnies & Champagne, but he's not new to me.
Sam and I lived in the same apartment complex. We met the first weekend that Kristen and I officially lived in Uptown. It was August 8, 2015. Per usual, at the pool. Kristen and I made several friends that day, and Sam invited us to go out that night. We started at his apartment and went to Standard Pour and Bowen House then he bought us LA Gourmet. He dipped his pizza in my ranch... not cool.

I thought Sam was such a creep, which he is. I wrote in my journal that he kept trying to get us to go to his lake house. I also wrote that I had my eye on a different neighbor boy, which Sam still teases me about.

Long story short: we went to his lake house.

Sam and I started hanging out all the time. We sorta kinda dated. This went on for 3 years. During that time, we had countless venison taco nights, made weekend and day trips to the lake, got to know each other's siblings and friends, watched almost every episode of the NBC Nightly News, The First 48 and Below Deck, took some cool trips and much more.

Even though Sam was my best friend, I thought we needed to go our separate ways. We weren't dating, but we weren't not dating. Confusing, right? I didn't go to the lake at all during summer, and we went a couple of weeks without talking.

In August, Sam knew I was studying for a certification. He washed my car in the middle of the night and left a note wishing me good luck on my exam. Game changer. He brought me LA Gourmet while I was studying. We sat on my living room floor, drank wine and talked for hours. It is one of my favorite Saturday nights.

With lots of convincing, I agreed to give Sam another chance. His friends and co-workers knew that he had to fight his way back into my life. Everyone referred to the mission as Operation Return to Grace. The mission was complete weeks before Sam's lease ended, and he moved to his house in Farmers Branch. Coincidence? I prefer God wink.

Sam is my best friend.

He's definitely my go-to for career advice. He wrote my cover letter and résumé, and we've rehearsed every interview question, annual review and raise I've ever gotten hundreds of times. He artfully constructs all of my challenging email replies, and sometimes he edits my blog posts.

We are in double digits for the times that I have called Sam or busted through his apartment door bawling (sometimes because of him. Ha!).

I get weekly quizzes from Safety Sam about what to do if there is an active shooter. He plays out different dangerous scenarios and explains the best options for survival. I am constantly told to carry a metal ink pen to use as a weapon and update my passwords to make my logins more secure.

My car is rarely dirty, and my oil, oil filter and air filter are regularly QA'd, even though I don't know what that entails.

Stressed-out Sam is never too busy for a text or call in the middle of the workday. Also note, he's never too busy for golf or Corvette maintenance during this time either.

Sam points out all the things I'm good at, like running and organizing, and he lets everyone know that I'm really bad at cooking and banned from grocery shopping because of too many failed attempts.


Sam and I share a common love: McDonald's. We get double cheeseburgers with Big Mac sauce, extra pickles, lettuce and large fries. Yes, we get our own large fry. Sharing food, especially fries, has a negative effect on our relationship.

Sam cannot get over the fact that I'm left-handed. He thinks it's "so crazy" to watch me write and eat. He regularly tells me this and calls me "Kendal long fingers". I can't forget to mention that Sam will call you out if you have chipped fingernail polish, which has resulted in many impromptu mani/pedi dates.

Because he's an old soul, we sometimes slow dance in the kitchen to '90s Country or Phil Collins. We use my Spotify account though because he refuses to pay for his own.

He's going to hate that I'm writing this, but we call each other "Bear" and "Bearette". Years ago, I told Sam that he was cranky like a grizzly bear. His response was, "I like that!", and it stuck.

His family, friends and even our dental hygienist ask me "how do you put up with him?". He's energetic, intense and never cares what people think. He challenges me and makes my life easy all at the same time. Like I said, he's my best friend.

Our story is a little nontraditional, but I believe it was perfectly woven together by God. Life with Sam is so, so good.