Our Love Story {Part 2}

Where did I leave off? Oh yes...the first meeting. John & I agreed that we would meet in the Food Court of a local mall at the picture booth by the front entrance (this was way before every Tom, Dick, & Harry owned a cell phone). I managed to convince my ever so giddy and curious entourage to wait outside the door, so the poor guy would not feel overwhelmed, ya know? So in I went and...no one was there! Hmm...maybe he is late, I wondered. So I stood and waited a few minutes, scanning the food court for any sign. Then I spotted this really cute guy with sparkling, mischievous eyes and a huge grin on his face sitting at a table on the far side of the food court, watching me with amusement. The stinker made me walk all the way over there and say, "John?" He had been watching me the whole time, just in case I turned out to be a not-so-fair maiden and he could make a run for it!



Well, I'm glad I met with his approval, because we spent the rest of the evening together and two weeks later he drove all the way to Southwestern Alabama to come see me and the rest is history. That was in July 2001 and we got married on May 25, 2002. God lead us to a wonderful church that challenged us like never before and a year after we were married God called John to preach. Me, a preacher's wife! God does have a sense of humor :).



He is the perfect man for me--we have both grown so much in the Lord and I don't know if I would be where I am if I hadn't met him. No, he's not perfect. And Lord knows I definitely am not. But the meeting of our jagged edges of imperfection have served to create a beautiful, smooth unity.



I wish I could tell you it's all been "happily ever after" without a cloud in the sky since but we both know that's not reality. We've struggled through rough terrains while melding together two drastically different upbringings and domestic cultures. We've climbed steep hills of shattered expectations and bitter disappointments. There were times that the only thing between one of us and the door was a long fall-on-our-face session before God. But with God as our anchor and foundation, we made it, and will continue to make it.



John is a quiet, shy guy with a gorgeous smile and beautiful blue-green eyes that gets him compliments from strangers all the time (women of all ages). From Grandmas in wheelchairs to toddlers in hairbows, females melt when he flashes his smile in their direction. I can't blame them. After 8 1/2 years, I still do ;). He loves his children fiercely, and is the hero of their lives. With 3 babies in 4 1/2 years, I don't know how I would've made it without a man who thinks nothing of changing a poopy diaper or cleaning up spit-up out of my hair.



He bakes the most fant-a-bulous cheesecake I've ever tasted, and loves to take to the woods and bring us home fresh deer meat, that he processes himself. He's a hard worker, and if he faces a task that he's never done before, he reads and researches and asks questions until he knows the issue inside and out. I've never know him to be late for work or even miss a day unless he's flat on his back sick. The needs of his family are his first priority and he puts our needs before his own.

Our love isn't the same giddy, exciting love that it was when we first met and married, but it has taken root and grown into a mature, steady love that is even better. I'm so glad God knew what He was doing all the time, and I thank him for that "broken road" that lead me straight to my husband.

This man of mine...I think I'll keep him!

Happy Valentine's Day, Baby!

This Man of Mine...{Our Love Story}

When I think about the man God has given me to share this life with, I'm amazed at the miracle of us, where we are, where we've been, and where we're going. And the most amazing part of all--how we came to be!

About 11 years ago, I was sitting in front of a computer (probably wasting time) in a college computer lab, surfing the internet, when I came across a Christian penpal site. The internet was a fairly new thing back then, at least to me, and I was intrigued at the prospect of having a penpal from another country and culture and thus I stumbled upon this site. After playing around a bit, I decided to try the keyword "Pentecostal", (since that's what I am) just to see if anyone I knew would pop up. That's the first time I saw his name, and never in my wildest dreams did I imagine how that one click of the mouse would effect my (or his) life.

We began to e-mail one another frequently, as he was newly saved and glad to have someone who was raised in church to ask questions of. He was dating someone, and I had no intention of meeting my life-mate "online" :). He was so sweet and genuine, and such a good listener. I began to look forward to his e-mails and sharing with him when I aced (or failed) a test or when one of my essays was read aloud by the Professor in English class. We shared frustrations over bad professors and he gave me a few pointers on how to get through Statistics without losing my mind.

After some time (I don't remember how long), the person he was dating broke it off with him, and he wrote me a long e-mail, pouring out his heart and hurt. Not long after, he asked if he could call me, and I gave him my phone number. The first time the crazy guy called, he did it at 5:00 on a Saturday morning on his way to work! My Mom was like "Who in the world is calling you this early in the morning?" I am not a morning person, either, so it's a wonder he ever called me again after that!

My family was a little taken a-back by the situation, and didn't really know what to think about a guy I met on the internet calling me. But soon my Mom was having conversations with him on the phone, and he won her over pretty fast ;).

About a year prior, I had made a commitment to the Lord that I was not going to date again until it was the "one" He had chosen for me to marry. I was weary of the ups and downs of dating, and just didn't have the energy to go through another break-up. So even though John & I were not even dating (nor had we even broached the subject), I began to seek God for direction about our relationship. I told Him that if this was not His will, to let me know and stop things before they progressed any further. Through it all I felt a peace.

After a few months of writing letters, e-mailing, and talking on the phone, we finally exchanged pictures. Wow! He was so cute, I wondered if maybe I was being dooped! Could a guy possibly be that great and that good-looking, and could he possibly be interested in ME? I must be crazy!!

One night during one of our phone conversations, he mentioned he had an aunt who lived close to a nearby city that we often visited to shop and go out to eat and that he was going to visit her for the weekend. After I told him how close I lived to the city, he suggested we get together and go out to eat or something. I couldn't believe that we were actually going to meet in person, and was nervous that we wouldn't have the same connection as we did over the airways. Of course my friends and family were a little worried, but also excited for me, and when the day came I was accompanied by my Mom, my sis-in-law, and another friend. Poor John got a little more than he bargained for that day, and I will tell you all about that meeting in the next post....

Stay tuned! :)

Love & Laughter

Well, Valentine's Day is almost here...what to do, what to do? I know some of you have some GREAT things planned (especially my friend Autumn)--I'll tell you about it later. Don't want to ruin the surprise! I have been racking my brain trying to think of something creative and inexpensive to do for my precious hubby. I am open to any suggestions!
I just wanted to share some funny things that have happened around here since John has been layed off. Last Friday morning, we were all still in bed. Elijah was lying between me and John. He was flipping and flopping and wanting to get up. Since it was only 6:00 a.m., I was not about to go for that! So I reached over and gave him a couple of good spats and told him to be still. But alas! It was John's cries I heard echoing back, not Elijah's! I had reached over a little too far and smacked John! I couldn't help but laugh at the expression on his face as he came bolting upright out of bed!!
And yesterday, Elijah was supposed be taking a nap, but he was fighting it. He kept getting up and walking in the kitchen where I was cooking. I would scold him and lay him back down. On one of the trips I left the phone in the room. A few mins later, I heard it ringing. There stood Elijah in the kitchen. He handed it to me and said, "Here", then he turned around and marched back to the couch and laid back down. He has only just now started talking, so that was a wow moment for me.
The pic above is an example of my new hobby...making hairbow boards. This one is similar to mine, the only difference is that mine is a little smaller and trimmed in marabou, or faux ostrich feathers. My digital camera is broken at the moment, or I would take some pics of mine and post them myself. I can customize one to match any bedroom, etc. They seem to be really taking off, as I have four orders to fill. Beam me if you would like one!