D' Peas

It was August. It was hot.
And so was my date....

Hot Hubs surprised me with concert tickets (for my birthday) for THE BLACK-EYED PEAS. The kiddos went to Nana's & HH & I took off for the city. First we went to Chevy's for din-din. Then we scooted down to the concert for some serious entertainment.

10 years since we laid eyes on each other. 9 years since we made that official. And our love... it's... still... CALIENTE. Muie, muie. (is that how you spell it?!)

No Foolin'

Seven years ago, a handsome 27-yr old looker & I went to check on the progress of our house that was being built. We had plans to marry, obviously as we were building a home together, but nothing was 'official',no dates were set, & no ring was upon my finger.

I noticed my heart throb was fidgety, acting nervous, & had (by a small miracle) not only suggested bringing the camera, but had remembered (a huge miracle) to bring it.

And when we climbed the mound of dirt, soon to be the Perry homestead, Jeff clasped my hands in his...
looked in my eyes...
his palms were sweaty...
he looked excited...
and....

HONK-HONK
It was our real-estate agent. She pulled her car through the circle & yelled from her window, "I have some papers for you to sign - DID I INTERRUPT SOMETHING?"
She knew it.
I knew it.

So, we descended from the cloud of romance to come down & talk business.

And as she drove away, there on the road in front of Jeff's Jetta, he got down on one knee & put the most beautiful & perfect-for-me ring, I'd ever seen.
"Amy Julane, will you marry me?"

...and I think you know the rest.

Something I learned that day:

Moments aren't what make magic....the person you are with -- that's what makes it magical.

Jeff, I love you so much. Thank you for asking me that question seven years ago. Life has gotten sweeter & sweeter since that day.
No foolin'.

I Am Thankful

Maybe even more than last year. Definitely more than 10 years ago.

So very thankful.

Thankful for...

Flynn stopping me as I walked out of her dark bedroom last night, to say I love you just once more.
Gabe running into Daddy's arms yesterday & laughing until he was out of breath.
Feeling the warmth of Jeff's arms around me & knowing that I am blessed.

Has It Been Six Years Already?

People always say it, but it's true...

in some ways it seems like it's been forever that I've been Jeff's wife;

but in other ways, it seems like just yesterday.

I can still smell the smells of the warm summer air...my roses...

And the feel of my dad's strong arm as he walked me down.
How handsome Jeff was in his tux & how I just knew this would last forever.
and we're well on our way....

Happy Anniversary Jeff, I love you!

A Hot Day in June

-just like this one, a bride-to-be nervously scoured her to-do list...knowing that she had less than 24 hours until her life permanently changed.

And just like everyone always says, there were little complications; like the cake being delivered (sans box or crate) 24 hours early, or the ground being damp & soft where the wedding would take place (at her parents'), or one of the flower girl's dress being sewn a little incorrectly.

She felt such excitement: Not for the friends she'd see, or the family that she hadn't seen for so long. Not for the hard work over the last 8 weeks that would pay off when she would see the beauty of the flowers & greenery. Not for the ceremony, so intricately planned. But for the marriage, that she knew would last a life time.

There was very little time left & it felt like the grains of sand in the hour glass were sifting through faster than the seconds ticking by. No time left to perfect the song she'd sing to her groom. No chance of losing those last couple of pounds. One more night left alone in her apartment as a single person.

But one thing was for sure, she never felt so sure about any other decision she'd made in her life. And when she thought of the days that would follow, she smiled inside & knew that God had rewarded her for being faithful to Him.

Don't Hate Us Because We're In Love

Don't hate us because we had the night to ourselves Friday.

Or because we had a dinner alone, no interruptions, no cutting someone's meat for them, or cleaning up a spill.

Try not to be jealous that we actually 'caught up' & finished a sentence and stared into each other's eyes.

Don't despise me because my husband is clearly blind & actually thinks I'm beautiful (& here's the sickening part, he tells me about 20 times a day).

Just remind me that I'm lucky.

Because I never want to forget.

12 Days of Valentine, HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

This is the photo that inspired me when making my wedding bouquet...

It's the final day, the 12th day...and it couldn't be more appropriate that this day I choose to thank you Jeff for your...

LOVE

You give it so freely, to everyone.

If this was the one thing Jesus really cared about asking us to do (appears in the NIV 551 times!), He's probably pretty pleased with you.

And the UNCONDITIONAL love you've shown me from the day we met, cannot be overlooked, nor can it be matched by anything.

This love shines through in everything you do. From the two jobs you keep, to the tireless way you come home from those two jobs & help me with the kids & the house & the chores that I should've had done by that time.

This love shows when you take your family to church every Sunday, and if we're so lucky to sit down during church, together, you never fail to put your arm around me & caress my shoulder.

That same love that inspires you to stay awake a little longer each night so that we can pray together.

It also is the same love that has cried with me in our sorrowful times...and has gushed with joy during the happy times of our life together.

It was in the look you gave me when the doctor told us Flynn was a girl, the look in your eyes when they laid Gabe on my chest.

In the tough times we've had together, it was the one constant. And despite the worries I may have had, everything else seemed to melt away with your regular display of love.

And on this, our 7th Valentine together, I hope you never doubt my love for you. It has not only kept from fading, it burns so brightly sometimes I'm sure I'm beaming. And it's because of you...

Happy Valentine's Day Jeff, I LOVE you!

Psalm 117:2 "For he loves us with unfailing love..."

12 Days of Valentine are drawing to a close...

Jeff proposed to me, right here, literally where I sit....only there wasn't an office chair, at a computer, in a livingroom. There were plans to be, but there wasn't yet. He took me here to look at the progress of our would-be house, and formalized the way we'd felt & the plans we'd made, and asked for my hand in marriage. 6 weeks later, we were mr & mrs. Now that's romance.

11th Day, 11th Way

GENTLENESS

From how gentle you kiss me to how gentle you lovingly discipline the kids.

How when you get mad, your brow might wrinkle, and that's probably the only physical change that will take place. I doubt your heart even beats faster.

You put things together with a tender touch & hold a baby like he or she is an egg.

And I love you, the way you are.

12 Days of Valentine...10th Day

I know, too freakish to be funny...

On this, the 10th day of Valentines, I had to pry my sick self from the recliner but you're worth every cough I succumb to send you my love...

The 10th day, the 10th way is your easiness.

Get your mind out of the gutter! By easiness, what I mean is you're so easy going you make everything easy.

You rarely stress, I never see you nervous. You never get uncomfortable because you are new, or don't know anyone.

As a matter of fact, I think the 2nd time you'd visited my parents, you were laying sideways across their loveseat, feet dangling off the side. Probably the third time you visited my sister & her family, you got a blanket (what we fondly call the "pimp blanket" on account of its furriness) & laid down in front of the fire & covered yourself. You were completely comfortable.

And that's how you approach life.

Easy.

I love it. It's the very reason my blood pressure is high & yours is low.

Easy to please & easy to love.

And I love to do both.

xoxo

9th Day of Valentine

You're even good with a bow & arrow.

Thank God I only did 12...I'm starting to wish I'd just done 3. Oy.

Alright honey, I'm worn out here, but I'll try not to let it show in my writing, because, you're worth every keystroke I type.

And I thank you for

Your Skillz

That goes for everything, from what I wouldn't want our mothers to read to the fact that your soccer talents paid your way to a teaching degree.

No matter what we do, I never have a doubt that you'll not only do it well, but will be the best one at it.

• Last night, you made soup. Not just did it sustain our growling tums, but it was downright tasty y'all.



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• At the park, you do upside down flips on the monkey bars.



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• In the snow, you know just how to handle the slick spots.



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• You can open a jar of pickles like nobody's biz.



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• You colored my hair, thus saving us $50 & it looked fab.



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• You deliver a lesson at church & keep the kids coraled & informed & entertained.



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• You're getting pretty darn good at the cha-cha-slide, almost as good as me.



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• You've mastered all the wii games at Nana's.



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• You can hook up any electronic gadget & do so, for our 'bigs'.



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• I've previously discussed your Mr Mom mastery.



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• You shovel the drive with speed & finesse.



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• You put together marble works waaaay better than momma.



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• You are the 'go-to' guy for any iTunes questions.



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• You are pretty good at helping a prego momma put her socks on.



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• You're tops at changing poopy diapers.



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• You know how to warm my heart (& my feet).

I love you sweetie pie & am happy that you're darn-right great at everything.

xoxo

8th Day of Valentine

"Funny Hats" August, 2001, Staff Meeting

HUMOR

I've already spoken of your outgoingness. And the line between the two of them is pretty fuzzy. It's hard to have one & not the other.



Did you know that I often didn't like to watch comedians? It took a LOT to make me laugh. Sit coms were boring. And the loud ones at parties, who usually got the chuckles? I thought they were just plain corny. I thought I was funny & maybe my sister, but not very many people tickled my funny bone.



Within are first few times of 'hanging out', you had made me laugh more than anyone I knew. Sometimes it was laughing at you, sometimes with you, & sometimes from you.



I probably haven't given you enough credit in this department, as I don't want to let down my humor guard... but let's just say, if humor is good medicine, I'd have a lot more health problems if you weren't around.
Sometimes, when you're at work, I'll laugh, thinking of something funny you did or said.



And I'll never get this out of my head: (what is now famously referred to as THE PAPER BLOCK)



It was August of 2001, we had been really good friends for several months, spending most of our time together. You were making your feelings more & more clear to me, but I was practicing restraint & being reserved about things.

You had shared with a girl we taught with, how you're never able to get close to me...that it seemed I always sat on the other side of the room, or positioned myself so that you left me alone.



In my apartment, I had -well - apartment furniture. Pier 1 would've been proud of the set up, as I used a single papasan chair in the corner & a double in lieu of a couch.

You told Jaime, "She always goes to that single chair first...I never even have a chance to sit beside her..."
She gave you the advice of, "next time you're with her, YOU go to that single chair first. She'll have no choice but to sit in the double. Then, in time, get up & sit in the double WITH her."



So, the night that could've been the turning point for us, I cooked us a would-be romantic dinner of chicken parmasean. You had your plan in place & headed straight for the single papasan. Just as if it were going smoothly, I headed to the double papasan. As I approached it, you were in such a hurry to beat me to the single, that you landed with too much velocity.

I still replay it in my mind... you hit the chair & tried to land as if all was well. But the law of motion didn't think so. Your arms windmilled as you s l o w l y went backwards...further...and further....and it seemed like five minutes had passed before you grasped the intersection of wall behind you like Spiderman. And then somehow tried to figure out how to pull yourself out of the situation.



We both had a good laugh. I didn't laugh as much as I felt like laughing, afterall, I knew you had a reputation to protect some pride.



But you still thought your plan would work. I could tell you were watching my every move. You had your next move calculated.

I did go to the double papasan, but your plan was FOILED when I spread out all my insurance paperwork around me which I had to turn it in the next day.



You shared this all with me a few weeks later, when we were "more than friends."



This funny scenario is one of the many. We're probably not as funny to other people as we are to each other. It's like our own language. We know where the line is with each other (I think it's the same line) & one of us whinces when the other tries a joke out on someone else & it goes awry. (which makes it that much funnier to the other person)



We've been through some situations in our life together that weren't fun. We still go through them. But I'm so thankful that I have someone to love & laugh with.



Thank you honey, for the gift of humor.

That's what she said.

7th Day of Valentine

On the 7th Day of Valentine, My true love gave to me,



The gift of being


MR MOM.



I can't imagine that too many moms, especially of a toddler & a preschooler, are completely, 100%, fine with leaving their kids with daddy.



But I am.



I do believe that God's given us Mommas a little something extra special, even after our lactating days are over, that is the one thing no one else has.

It's probably the same as my ability to look like the Pied Piper leading around the mice (picture this, while I'm on an important phone call, going from room to room in the house, all in an attempt to escape noise).

It's the same as when I go into the bedroom to fold & put away laundry. And even tho there is ASBOLUTELY NOTHING of interest in our room, at least not to the 4 & under crowd, they want to be in there.

BECAUSE I AM.

And usually that's endearing, but sometimes also annoying, as Gabe tends to mess up laundry piles.



And Jeff, even though you don't have that unspecified God-given gift, that instinct that is a cure-all in every situation (like I'm some kind of proverbial band aid for every proverbial boo boo), you do have a talent of caring for the kids, that almost matches mine.



When I have a night at the office, or an evening meeting, or a girls' night out, and I come home to find both kids, not only have survived the evening, but have so much fun they want to talk about it the next morning, it's reassuring.

You not only do the minimum to care for them, you work hard to make it a peaceful return home. When I walk through the door to silence & sleeping kids, and a clean livingroom floor, it doesn't make me feel guilty that I had to leave. It makes me happy that if I ever walked out the door & couldn't return (sad thought!), the kids would be well cared for by their daddy.

You remember Flynn's medicine. You change Gabe's diaper as often as it should be. You don't take chances with Flynn & there's never been an episode while she's with you.
It's harmonious when you're here with them, and I never call home to check up & hear distress in the background or a plea from you for me to hurry up & hurry back.

It makes me want to return the favor.

And take a trip to Mexico.

I love you honey. xoxo.

Days of Valentine - 6th way

This way is one of my most prized:

GOOD LOOKS

Otherwise known as:

• eye candy


• hot


• very attractive


• not-so-bad-on-the-eyes


• quite the looker


• gorgeous


• yummy


• cute


• beautiful


• sexy


• striking


• handsome

That's him alright. I wouldn't go so far as to say he's my trophy husband. But I would go so far as to say that I proudly wear myself on his arm when we go places and I've always been proud to introduce him to acquaintances he's never met.

Did you know that before he knew me, I saw him & inquired about him? My niece Hannah was in third grade at the school which he taught at (which I later taught at). He taught second grade, two doors down from her class.

I took Hannah to school a couple of different occasions, late, & "needed" to walk her to her class. I tried to be nonchallant while getting a good 'gander' into his classroom. You know, it's not often that elementary teachers are men. And even more rare that they're worth a second look (let alone three, four, or five looks).

Later, I asked Hannah about him. She giggled & was excited at my interest. Before I knew it, she'd told one of her friends who supplied her with a bunch of "facts" (which weren't very factual).

He never knew a student's aunt was hot after him. And I don't think he actually saw me until a year later when I subbed next door to him. And even then I'm not sure he 'really' saw me (the monumental moment was a month later when I subbed for him).

How often do people get to marry someone who took their breath away at first sight? And even less often than that, those people continue to stay smitten with their spouse.

I'm glad I'm one of those few.

OPERATION: Dinner Surprise a Surprise!

For Jeff's bday, I had a surprise dinner planned for almost a month.
All I told him was to dress up, take the kids to my parents' & come back 'for me'.

Yesterday, while he was at work, I prepared as much of it as I could. Made the pesto sauce, tossed the salad, marinaded the steak. I had to hide all of this as he was home about an hour yesterday between work & leaving with the kiddos.

He thought he was coming back to pick me up... instead he found me waiting (dressed up!) with course 1 (of 5), sitting on the table. We had fancy dinnerware & linens (Thanks to the Caseys), flowers & candlelight, & Jeff's favorite, steak, simmering in the broiler. I planned an hour long playlist of songs perfect for the occasion.

Jeff was very surprised & after a movie (complete with tv trays for dessert, something we never do with the kids around!), I gave him a gift from me, a subscription to '90-Minute Soccer', which he loved. The movie was 'License to Wed' (I highly recommend, very cute -- and HOW COME NO ONE TOLD US?, had 5 of THE OFFICE actors in it).

He was surprised & had thought I was taking him to see Wicked at the Fox. He said it was his best birthday ever. Everyone, all together now, "Aaawwwwww."

Other news, after baking a batch of chocolate cookies, I was doing a deep sweep -- like moving furniture & stuff. Interesting things I found: an alphabet marker, 2 pieces to lite brite, 2 crayons, a slinky, a fork, a matching game, & a marble from hungry-hungry hippos.

We miss the kids & Nana will be bringing them home momentarily. Flynn has a Princess Tea Party to go to. Again with this kid having a social life.

Photos to come...as soon as we find the camera.

Also to come... Gabe's first night in a big boy bed. Will it happen? Will we survive? Will he??

Notes from Daddy

...just another reason I love him so.

These were on each of our doors yesterday morning when we woke up.

Even better than a treat in our shoes from St. Nick.

One of the many reasons we love Daddy so.

THANKFUL

Thankful for...

him...

and her...

and him...

It's Not Very Often

that you & your hubby get to spend the weekend together. It's even more rare for your hubby to not only say okay to a weekend of faux therapy, but be excited about it to boot.

I don't know how great of a portion of the content directly applied to us, as I think our marriage is pretty darn close to perfect... but just being together all weekend. Having the opportunity to actually finish a sentence without screaming toddlers interrupting us abruptly.
I haven't stared into Jeff's gorgeous hazel eyes for that long, in a long, long time. Too long. So if I recommend it, for no other reason, I'd say that's enough.

And spending a night in a hotel?....

BONUS.