Celebrating Ten Years

So, next Wednesday is January 16th.  And that is the day of our big ultrasound.  And that is the day that Kyle and I officially celebrate ten years together.  Craziness.  So, this post is technically a week early, but I will be busy updating you all with (hopefully) great news about this baby during my next post - and my hubby deserves a blog entry all for himself...

Kyle and I met in his college dorm room late at night... it's not what you think.  My twin brother, his roommate, had come to fetch me and bring me back to Towson University to have a relaxing weekend away.  I had just returned from Hawaii, after divorcing my military, abusive, drug-addicted husband.  I wasn't necessarily looking for love, but when I walked in that room and saw Kyle's smile, I was smitten.  Then, from his top bunk, he lowered his arm to shake my hand.  Oh em gee.  Men actually do that?  There are men alive who actually have manners?  Yeah.  It was love at first handshake.

We spent October to January getting to know each other and went on our official first date on 1/16/03.  We saw Antwone Fisher, an amazing movie starring Denzel Washington.  It was a terribly sad film, and as I sat in my seat crying, Kyle leaned over and asked if he could hold my hand.  Seriously, who does that?  He was the kindest man I had ever been around.  For the rest of the movie, he held my hand and stroked my thumb with his. Didn't get that first kiss until date number three.  He was the perfect gentleman.

A month later, he was home from college visiting me for Valentine's Weekend.  We had this cute habit of asking each other what the other one was thinking.  It was a great way to dive into deep conversation.  We were hanging out in my room and our conversation had grown quiet.  I asked him what he was thinking and he replied, "that I love you."  Swoon.

We got engaged just short of a year after we started dating, on December 8th, 2003.  We had talked about marriage for months, so I knew exactly what was up when I walked to my car after classes that day.  There was a CD with a note attached that said, "Play Me" and a long page of instructions and questions I had to answer.  As I placed the CD in my player, I could hear his sweet voice telling me "this was it."  He had burned my favorite Coldplay song, saying it was my background music as I filled out his questionnaire (full of questions like, "What is Kyle's favorite drink?" and "Fill in this bible verse - Wives submit to your _____.")  He's funny like that...  When I was done filling it out, I was told to drive to his house, just a few minutes away.

As soon as I opened his parent's back door, I knew he was in his room because his door was closed, and it was never closed.   As I opened his door, the heat hit me.  He was waiting inside, with roses and candles lit all over his small room.  Poor guy must have been sweating for more reasons than one!  I stood there in shock, so he carefully sat me down on his bed as he lowered to one knee.  He didn't just "pop the question."  Oh no, he had a whole little speech prepared.  About how much I had been let down by the men in my life, about how he wanted to be the man to change all that.  That he wanted to be with me forever and that he'd never give up on us.  And then he asked if I would marry him.  I did what most girls do, I said yes and called my mother...

We decided on a long engagement (a year and a half) since we were both still attending college, and we wed the summer he graduated, on June 25th, 2005.  He had his degree in Elementary Education, but did not yet have a teaching job.  Oh, and we were having difficulty finding anyone to rent to us because the only income we could show was his YMCA summer counselor's pay, and my part-time job at a vet's office. This was the first time we had to rely on God to provide, and Kyle was doing a much better job than I.

God did, in fact, show up and provide for us.  We were able to rent a beautiful three-bedroom duplex that Kyle's cousin happened to be moving out of.  The landlord was happy to rent to someone he (kinda) knew, instead of having to put out an ad to find new tenants.  The married life was wonderful.  It's true what they say - it's being able to have a sleep-over with your best friend everyday.  It was pure bliss to be able to spend every extra moment with one another.  And you know what?  It still is...

I was now in school full-time, but we wanted to be parents as soon as possible, so we did what most people do - we adopted pets!  Just a matter of weeks after our wedding, we adopted our mutt, Kennedy, from a rescue and then a few months after that we got a kitten, Nicolas, from the Humane Society.  It was so great to have something to love and care for before diving into the world of parenthood.  I was a college student with lots of time on my hands, as you can see from these next pics...

I graduated in May of 2007, started my first real job in June, and got pregnant that September.  So, we had a good three years together, just the two of us, before Joel was born the summer of 2008.

We got pregnant with Gabriel when Joel was just six months old.  Not planned, but loved all the same.  He was born the next summer, in 2009.  You can read about his fatal diagnosis, birth, and short time on Earth HERE.  And our third little blessing, a girl named Zoe, was born two summers after that in 2011.  And just as if we planned it perfectly (which we certainly didn't), our fourth little one is due this summer.

We are loving this "season" we are currently in.  Making and raising babies, doesn't get much better...

Ten years together, seven years married, four babies created.  Believe me when I say I know how lucky I am.  I thank God often for providing me with such an amazing husband.  Looking forward to the next fifty years...