You gotta love Facebook these days, and all the new and fabulous technological features. My personal favorite lately is, “On this Day”, where I’m instantly brought back in time to what I’ve shared on that very day on all the years passed. We’re talking one year ago to upwards of a decade ago. Once in a while I’m reminded of something I’ve totally forgotten about, while others, although long ago, are still fresh in my heart and mind.
Take for example my blast from the past on January 16th, when a picture popped up in my memories of me being out with friends, and my husband is standing in the background. That was the first night we ever met, but I always say we met twice because our first encounter was brief and informal, and I didn’t really “officially” meet him until two days later. But there’s something special about January 16th, and it’s a night that I loved and remember well. The funny thing is, I didn’t need Facebook to remind me of it, because I have a good memory and a knack for remembering dates, especially when they mean something to me.
So… January 16th, 2009, I was a newly single gal out with friends on a Friday night. After a bad breakup from a rocky relationship that lasted over two years I was out living it up finally finding myself and happiness again, and I had zero intentions of looking to start anything new. In fact, all I really wanted to do was be single for a while, but as they say it’s when you’re not looking that you’ll find the one. And boy are “they” right!
The very first time I met my husband we were both out with a group of friends. One of my friends knew one of his friends, we were informally introduced, chatted for a few minutes and then went on our merry way. Two days later is the night I called my “one month liberation” from a nasty ex-boyfriend, or better known as my ex-asshole, because let’s be real people, he was a complete and utter asshole, and my life greatly improved the night I finally decided to kick him out of my apartment. It was a snowy Sunday night and my friend Stefanie and I headed out to have dinner at a local restaurant, which happened to be the same place where I had met my husband two nights before. When we walked into the pub area, there he was, my future husband sitting at the bar with a friend… OK let’s keep it real, he was with a woman. Long story short the two of them decided to come sit with my friend Stefanie and I and we all hung out for several hours sharing lots of conversation and laughs.
I had originally assumed my husband was dating the woman he was with, but they said they had just met and that they were nothing more than friends. Although, as the night went on, it was pretty clear that she was into him, but that he was definitely into me! And quite frankly, I was into him too. He was captivating – telling me stories about living in France and speaking the language fluently – I found him interesting, intriguing and ridiculously cute. And ladies, there’s really nothing sexier than a man speaking French to you. By the end of the night he said how much fun he was having with all of us and said we should all hang out again soon. We all exchanged numbers, said our good bye’s and went home.
I left that night totally crushing on him, but still not wanting anything serious, and really not knowing if I’d hear from him. But the next day he started texting me, and texting for hours turned into him calling me and talking on the phone for several hours which turned into him asking me out on a date. I was excited, but also nervous, and I told him I didn’t want to come in between him and anything he had going on with the other woman, because it was clear she liked him. He assured me he wasn’t interested in anything more than a friendship with her and that he was only interested in me. So… I said yes.
I remember almost cancelling the date. I had only been single for one month and I didn’t feel ready to jump into something so soon. But something told me to go, so I went. Our first date was on January 20th, he cooked me dinner at his house; it was simple, relaxing and perfect. We hung out talking for hours. There are certain conversations and things I remember about that night so clearly – as if it were yesterday. I remember what I was wearing, what he was wearing, what he cooked for dinner and specific conversations. One thing I will never forget him saying was, “I’d like to thank the guy who screwed it up with you, because he just did me a big favor.”
We started dating consistently and within six months he asked me to move in with him. All of my single friends were asking if I could clone him or if he had a single brother, and everyone including my entire family absolutely loved him. It all moved so fast, but I knew from the very beginning that he was the one. And eight years later he’s still the one. He’s the one who I can be carefree and 100% myself around without ever feeling like I have to pretend to be someone I’m not. He’s the one who absolutely always encourages me, supports me, respects me, inspires me, motivates me and loves me for all that I am.
There’s no denying that we complement each other. He calms my crazy and I keep him in his toes, and after all these years I still have friends and family tell me how good we are together and that we’re a perfect match. There’s not a single day in my life that goes by that I don’t thank my lucky stars that fate and the universe brought us together. I truly believe that some things are meant to be, and my husband and I, we’re meant to be. He makes me want to be a better person.
We are the perfect pair, and if I had to do it all over again, I’d do it all exactly the same. So to my husband, to my one and only, to the man who captured my heart and soul – here’s to eight amazing years together from our very first date. I can only hope and pray that life grants with a million more <3