We met on ChristianMingle in late February 2009. Within one month of joining, Greg sent me a message. He was a cop and he noticed I was a paramedic. It was that connection that motivated him to write me about swapping stories, since by virtue of our professions we no doubt had many interesting ones to tell. I noticed how friendly and down-to-earth he was, which put me at ease, and we continued chatting online for many months, sharing our stories and relating.
He lived in Texas and I in Arkansas, so that summer, we met in the middle. We had an enjoyable time eating lunch at a diner, playing a couple rounds of putt-putt in the sweltering heat and cooling down afterwards with smoothies. It wasn’t love at first sight like some people experience. Sometimes it takes time, an open-mind and caring gestures to grow love. I moved away after the summer to Washington State.
We were still friends, talking on the phone, text messaging, and mailing each other our favorite CDs, DVDs, and inside jokes. Greg will do anything for a laugh. I appreciated his lighthearted take on the world, his interest in music, his easygoing nature, and maturity. I had no idea our friendship would amount to anything until Greg decided to visit me for my birthday in December that same year. We spent the weekend going to a football game and exploring Seattle. We found ourselves counting down the days to the next visit.
At New Years, I visited him in Arkansas for a few days and met his family and friends. He told me at the airport that he wanted to move to Washington. It meant so much that he would give up his house, vintage car, being near his family and even his job to be closer to me. He came to visit on Valentine’s Day and we had another great weekend. He gave me an Irish ring and I cross-stitched him a key (to my heart). It was love. And we told each other so on Valentine’s Day and just hours before his plane was to leave again for Arkansas. Our romance was not only long distance but a whirl-wind.
He came back in March to interview for jobs and near the end of his visit he proposed on March 14, 2010. He said he was planning on waiting before he got a job and could save enough for a ring, but sometimes love just happens and it seems foolish to wait. He used the Irish ring he had given me the month before. I was glad he didn’t wait as I could care less about a diamond ring. The next day he left again; we had talked about an August wedding. But on his way to the airport, he called and suggested May, only two months away. I thought it was a great idea. I quit my job and stayed with him in Arkansas for the month before the wedding. It was nice to finally be in one place together, seeing as how our whole relationship had been long distance.
It’s funny to think we had only seen each other on 5 separate occasions before we got engaged. It made spending the month with him before the wedding that much more special. We were married in Texas on May 15, 2010. Then we drove cross-country to our new place in Washington State and we love every minute we have together. It’s been almost a year now since our wedding day and our lives are the happiest we’ve ever known, through the hard times and the easy times. And we have God and ChristianMingle to thank for bringing us together.