I had a plan for my life. I was going to throw myself into motherhood and being a teacher. There was no time or place for dating. Well, I was wrong. The Lord had a different (and better) plan for me. His plan included an amazing man named Jonathan.
Jon came into my life last September . He asked me out on a date to play tennis. I agreed to the date, but quickly had to back out due to the fact that I had parent-teacher- conferences the night of our scheduled date. Jon, being the amazingly smart man he is, asked if he could reschedule the date for the next night. I agreed.
The night of our tennis date quickly arrived, and I was not feeling up to a first date. I was about to cancel the date when my mom came into my room and encouraged me to go on the date. I cant remember the exact pep-talk she gave me, but I do remember something about how it would be good dating practice and I always love a good game of tennis. My mom made some valid points. I quickly grabbed my tennis gear, about 3 sweatshirts (it was a chilly Fall night), and pulled my hair into a disgusting looking pony tail. I didn't even apply make-up. Im sure I was a pitiful sight.
I arrived to the tennis courts (late, of course) and there was Jon. He was wearing athletic pants, a sweatshirt, and a red sweatband across his forehead. He was shorter than anyone I had ever dated before and he had salt and pepper hair, but he was cute. I immediately felt a bit unprepared for this date and I desperately wished I would have applied make-up. We started playing tennis in the freezing cold weather. We tried to talk while playing, but its hard to carry a conversation when you are far away from each other and you are trying to play a sport. I so badly wanted to stop playing tennis and just talk to him. He was interesting. I wanted to know more about him, plus I was not playing tennis very well. I think he picked up on my hints about stopping the game and we eventually sat down on a bench and started talking. He was easy to talk to and I enjoyed his company.
We ended up talking at the tennis court for a few hours. It turned out to be a great date. As I drove home that evening I did what every girl does after a first date: I thought about if I could see a relationship/future with Jon. I honestly didnt think a serious relationship would come about, but I also didnt mind the idea of going out with him again and being his friend.
Well, we went out again. and again. and again. and again.... We developed a great friendship and our friendship turned into an unexpected and undeniable romance and love.
After dating for a while, I knew I was hooked on Jon, but my feelings for Jon wouldn't mean a thing if my spunky little two-year-old did not approve. I was very hesitant to have Jon and Hadley meet. I prepared Jon for the worst and I expected the worst (toddler tantrums, hitting, scratching, yelling, etc). When Hadley and Jon finally met, there was an incredible peace that came over me. Hadley and Jon hit it off right away and have continued to develop a loving and fun relationship ever since. They clicked from the start. Hadley adores Jon, and more importantly, Jon loves Hadley as if she were his own. He is an amazing dad. I will have to do a whole other post about that later.
Let me tell you a bit about this hunky man of mine.
- He is super duper smart.
- He works harder than anyone I know.
- He has a strong testimony and lives by what he believes.
- He loves Star Wars.
- He loves Star Trek.
- He basically loves anything nerdy.
- He dresses really well.....except for on Saturday. For some reason he thinks it's a day off from fashion. Im working on that one ;)
- He has an awesome family. Hadley and I cant wait to "officially" be part of his family.
- He loves Disney.
- He thinks my cooking is amazing.
- He enjoys politics.
- He graduated with a degree in Political Science.
- He loves baseball.
- He makes me laugh.
- He is very calm and even-tempered.
- He always finds the good in people.
- He likes movie theater popcorn with extra butter (just like me).
- He is loyal.
- He is reliable.
- He is extremely honest.
- He is a TOTAL BABE.
- He makes me happy.
As usual, things are crazy and life is changing. I appreciate all of your encouraging words and thoughts during this time in my life. I know marrying Jon is the right thing to do. The Lord's timing and plan is perfect. I am happy, and life is wonderful. 1 more week!!!
