Tuesday, October 19, 2010

8.5 years...

My husband and I have been together 8.5 years…some days it seems longer and some days it seems shorter. I guess it depends on our mood and how we are feeling. The one thing that is always a constant is the love that we have felt for each other almost from day one.

Chaz asked me to go to prom with him on April 19, 2002. If we are being completely accurate, it was actually around 1:30 am on April 20th but more on that later! So Chaz asked me to prom after being prodded by numerous people to just ask someone so he wouldn’t miss out on the experience. So he did, and I said yes as I was expecting it. I had told Laine, his sister who is my friend and played the role of matchmaker, if he wanted to go, he had to ask soon as I would only have two weeks to get a dress…that seemed to move the process. And after he asked, I could not fall asleep. I was excited and giddy and a whole boat load of teenage hormones. The best part, I was sleeping over that night, so there I am, huddled into a bed with two other girls, one being his sister, unable to fall asleep. Just precious, right?

So the next day I went to JC Penny with my mom to find a dress. We went back a week later as my dad needed to approve since I was a bit young for prom (I was 16). The day of Prom arrived and we went to dinner and prom in the cities and after we drove home, just the two of us, and I was in heaven. I had my hand on his knee and it felt so grown up. And he was so sweet and told me how lucky he felt to have gone to prom with me. It truly was one of the best nights my little teenage self experienced.

I have no clue how our relationship evolved from there as we did not go to prom as a full fledged “dating” couple. We went more as intrigued friends. And both of us were so fricken shy that I really do not know how we even started dating. I remember after prom it being a little awkward to see each other in the hallway because we were both confused. And, having a boyfriend seemed so foreign to me so I actually felt weird about it.

Somehow, the end of May rolled around and we went to a movie and dinner in Maple Grove. This was probably our first “real” date. We feasted on Red Lobster and saw Undercover Brother! When May 19th rolled around, I was anxious to put an anniversary out there so I bought him a little 99 cent card and gave it to him. Years later it dawned on me that the 20th may have been more suitable (see above!) but alas, I was impatient that one May 19th and hence our anniversary is the 19th!

We spent the summer totally obsessed with one another. We spent a ton of time together and pondered where our relationship would go as he was leaving for college in the fall and I was starting my junior year of high school. Our last “Anniversary” we celebrated that summer was on August 19th, right before he left for college (just a side note: when you are an enthralled teenager you celebrate anniversary’s monthly…it is so ingrained in us now that we still tell each other, happy eight years and six months if we remember). So back to the August night…He took me out his parents boat and we had dinner with sparkling grape juice, and a carrot cake for dessert. It was the sweetest gesture and I realized then that this was for real. He had talked about really wanting to be together and I felt the same way, so we decided to try it out.

The day he left for school, at the end of August, was an incredibly sad day. We said goodbye and as his parents and him drove off and I stood in the yard with his sister, I felt a heavy wave of sadness. I held it in as I was dropping Laine off at a friend’s, but as soon as I dropped her off, I lost it! I just started bawling and was sad and scarred and confused, completely normal for a teenager right?

Needless to say, things calmed down. We spent a crap load of time on the phone, hours nightly. We saw each other every two to three weeks. Sometimes longer. It was hard, and we questioned a lot of things, but something told us to stick it out and boy am I glad it did. When we would see each other after weeks apart, it was always new and took some time adjusting but I always got a wave of butterflies when he pulled up. And I think that because of all this time apart and the countless time of being reunited, when his keys turn in the door now, I still get butterflies and I am super excited to see him.

I have experienced the best years of my life with Chaz. He has been there through the ups when everything is falling into place and he has been there during the darkest hours of my life, offering support, love and comfort. I am so glad we made it this far and I am ecstatic that we have made the commitment to spend the rest of our lives and beyond together!

I love you baby! Happy Anniversary!

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