7 years stronger

Senior Year — Paint the Dam

7 years ago today I didn’t think that this is where I would go in my life. If you asked me 7 years ago if I’d be a married mama to a 5 year old child and almost finished with an Associates Degree in Health care administration, all the while living in my husband’s sister’s basement next door to his mother and father, I would’ve told you that you were insane. Little did I know by saying yes to a simple everyday question that my whole life would change in another 6 months. You see this time 7 years ago I was fast asleep excited to have just start my SENIOR year of high school a couple weeks before. I was even excited to be flirting with THE cliqued boy of high school. You know the jock, the one EVERYONE knows but he hardly remembers? Yeah THAT boy was Jeff. It’s funny how I spent 2 years turning him down to end up with him our senior year. I still find it a sign that I seen him at least one time EVERY year. Freshman year we had Health Class together (Yeah we’ve heard all the jokes don’t worry), Sophomore year we had 1st hour US History together. He sat next to me in the next room and always teasing me. He asked me out a couple times but I shot him down to go out with other boys. We talked and passed notes to each other lol. Then junior year we didn’t have a class together but I saw on the way to my final class of the day as he was heading home cause he had a free period. Then Senior year I

Homecoming 2003

was suppose to be in his English class but that was because I wasn’t in my Honors English class. So when I got that switched we didn’t really have a class together. But my sister wanted to go to the Freshman football game (first of the season of course) and my mom didn’t want to drive us at separate times so I reluctantly went with and he was the only one there that I knew so we spent the whole game talking .Then everyone started showing up for the Senior’s game and before I knew it he was leaving (he had to work in the morning at Burger King lol) and I walked him out to his car and we kissed …. that was the moment I knew. Then he spent most of the days I didn’t work or he didn’t have sports/work at my house and a week later he picks me up for a football game and tells me “Oh by the way you’re going to meet my mom today” Um we weren’t even officially dating yet lol, so after meeting her we were hanging out killing time and he goes “I suppose I should pop the question huh?” I’m thinking what?! LOL then he asked me to be his girlfriend and 5 months later we were engaged (he even had a ring picked out and paid for) and I knew we were meant to be the minute he kissed me, I saved that special moment for the right time and up until the time we had that moment he was always making sure I wanted to do this and know that he
wasn’t pressuring me at all. Of course then in March we found out I was pregnant which leads us to today 7 years later. If you’ve been following along you know we have had a crazy roller coaster ride these last 7 years and part of that was because we didn’t know how to grow as people AND as a couple. We’ve had A LOT of life thrown at us really quickly that we didn’t know what to do really and I think despite the fighting we clung to each other so much because we were going through it together, plus as the saying goes you hurt the ones you are closest to and boy have we done that. We’ve been through a graduating high school, having a baby, moving in together, getting married, getting our own place and the stress that brings all with in the first year and a half of being together. Then we had to deal with Jeff’s back problems, my grandma dying, and the toll that’s taken on me. While he’s not been as supportive of that situation when it happened I know I had my moments of not giving it all I had either so I have finally let that grudge go.  I think we finally figured out how to keep growing as individuals AND a couple, which is big for us, and to be honest we’re the happiest we’ve been in a LONG time. Not because what we have but because we’re making the best of what we have and that’s all I ask for really. We’re taking it one day at a time and I’m glad I didn’t give up.