Happy St. Patrick's Day

As you read this post, you may be wondering why I chose to post it today. It might seem more appropriate for our wedding anniversary or Valentine's Day, but today is an anniversary for Joey and I. Five years ago today, we met for the first time face to face. For those of you who may not know, Joey and I "met" on eHarmony. We were matched up on Oct. 9, 2005. I was going to end my membership at the end of the month when we were matched up. We communicated online through the site, email, and IM for months and eventually through phone calls and text messages. After months of communicating, we prayerfully considered meeting face to face. It was a big decision to make. Since he lived in Memphis and I lived in Leavenworth, the meeting meant an entire weekend, not just one night over dinner. It was a major commitment to make, financially and time wise. The Lord answered our prayers when Joey's dad had to go to Kansas City for business and asked Joey if he wanted to tag along. It was the sign we needed. We made plans to meet that weekend.

St. Patrick's Day 2006 happened to fall on a Friday. It was a workday for me at school and the following week was Spring Break. All day long, I was a bundle of nerves. I could barely eat the Guinness stew I had for lunch at a local restaurant. Very few people knew that we had been communicating at this point, but those who did knew how nervous we were. It was with a sense of relief that I finally left work and went back to my apartment to get ready. Finally, the moment arrived, Joey picked me up at my apartment. He was even more good looking than his pictures. We were both so nervous. What if the weekend worked out and things went well? What would we do about the distance? What if the night did go well? Then we would be stuck with each other the rest of the weekend. We went to Granite City at the Legends for dinner. It is our special spot and any time we are in Leavenworth, we make it a point to go there. Wish there was one here.

Despite our nerves, dinner went well. We then went back to my apartment and watched a movie. Joey went back to the hotel he and his dad were staying at. We made plans for the next day. I showed him around Ft. Leavenworth. I think he was probably bored with my history lesson about the Fort, but he covered it up well. I guess that is what comes with dating a history teacher. Sunday, he went to church with me and then we went to my parent's house for lunch. He met my entire family that weekend. What a brave guy. My brother and sister in law came in from Ft. Reilly for the occasion. Sunday evening, we had dinner with his dad. It was great to be able to meet a member of his family that weekend. I would meet the rest of his clan that April over Easter. After dinner, we went back to my apartment to watch a movie and spend a couple more hours together. If you ask Joey to tell you this story, he says I denied him a kiss. I did, choosing to wait until we were sure this was it. With sadness, we said goodbye that night. Joey and his dad were heading back the next morning. I wanted to go with them so bad, but had some commitments for the week. After he left, I wanted to cry. It was a wonderful weekend.

So began our long distance relationship. We would fly back and forth to see each other. We talked on the phone every night and text messaged a lot. I had to up my text messaging plan to cover the number of texts we sent. A year and a few months later, we were married and began our life together. The Lord truly blessed my St. Patrick's Day 5 years ago. I am so thankful that He brought us together in His time. We were able to really get to know each other in those months before we met and discuss topics that aren't discussed until later in a relationship. Happy Anniversary to my wonderful, amazing husband. I love you more now than I did 5 years ago. I thank the Lord for you and our life everyday. Happy St. Patrick's Day!!