Our Story

We met during our senior year of high school.  We got assigned to go to SBU on the same day to sign up for their first semester of college.  Robert went about his business, but I kept him on her mind for the next two years.  One day, Robert came to his senses and started pursuing me.  We were good friends for a few months before Robert got up the courage to ask my parents for permission to date me, and we officially became a couple on March 13, 2009.  We knew after a few months that we'd found true love. :)  After two years of dating I started asking Robert for several weeks if today was THE DAY.  I knew the engagement was close, and then it happened.  The big question came on August 8, 2011.  I had no other option than to say YES to the man who has exceeded all of my dreams and expectations.

On Friday, August 5 while I was in Olathe my good girl friends (Elise, Leigha, and Kelsey) texted me and asked me to join them for a girls' day in Springfield on Monday.  We left today around 11:30.  We ate lunch at Panera, hit up the mall, stopped by Bed Bath and Beyond, got feather hair extensions (wild! hehe), stopped by Andy's Frozen Custard, and then headed back to Bolivar.  Leigha kept insisting that we had to be back to town by 5:00 because her mom wanted to make dinner with her (lie).  I texted Robert to let him know I was on my way back, and he said we could make dinner at my house because my parents were going out to eat (as he had asked them to do).  I got to the house and helped him finish up dinner (grilled chicken, corn on the cob, and mashed potatoes).  I teased Robert and said, "Should I dress up?"  He said, "Yes.  Go put on your long, blue dress."  I knew something was up then. I'd been teasing Robert for several days because I knew it was happening sometime soon.  When I asked if I should dress up I was totally kidding, so when he said yes I knew.  I smiled really big, and then left to change.  Robert said we didn't need drinking glasses because we weren't eating at home anyway.  I got slightly confused for a minute, thinking that we had actually made dinner for other people.   We took the food with us to a pavilion in town.  Robert had a table, chairs, cloth napkins, and drinks awaiting us.  We ate our delicious dinner, and then Robert got out his guitar.  He played his guitar and sang a beautiful song he had written just for me.  During the song I went from tearing up a bit to smiling from ear to ear.  After that, he had me open a package which was a scrapbook he made all by himself. He had been saving tickets from dates (movies, plays, sporting events, etc.) the whole time we've been dating, so the scrapbook consisted of tickets from dates, pictures, and notes we had given each other.  It chronicled our relationship and ended with a new note from him where he promised to love me and take care of me forever.  When I finished, he got down on one knee and proposed.  Of course I said, "YES!"  We snapped a few photos, and then headed back to the house where my parents were waiting for us.  Robert had asked their permission last week, and they are very happy for us.  Jim and Amanda came over to celebrate too.  We called Robert's parents and our grandparents to share the good news.  Then we went over to Elise's house to have an engagement party with about fifteen friends.  When we entered the house we saw a lovely hand-painted congratulations sign made by Elise, and it had twinkle lights around it.  Leigha had made a cake, and we toasted with sparkling grape juice.  It was a perfect day, and I am blessed.

We got married on Sunday, May 20, 2012 - 8 days after I finished grad school and just 1 day after Robert finished college.  We were able to celebrate our day with about 250 family members and friends.  The weather was perfect, and the day was a blessing from God.  After honeymooning for a week we packed up and moved 1,100 miles to North Carolina.  Just 10 days after saying, "I do," we were officially on our own in a state where we knew a grand total of two people...and they still lived three hours away.

Robert graduated from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary on December 12, 2014.  We moved back to Missouri in January 2015 for Robert to be a student minister at South Gate Baptist Church, and we are thrilled to live near family again.  We welcomed our first child, Sarah Elizabeth, on August 5, 2015, and I am a full-time stay at home mom.