EIGHT Years...REALLY?

Tomorrow Luke and I will celebrate our eight year anniversary. It is hard to believe that Luke and I have been married eight years. Where does the time go? I have been saying that a lot lately. It seems like the older you get, the faster time flies.

I thought it might be nice to write about how we met and fell in love. The details become more vague as the years pass by.

Luke and I met in 2000. Josh got me a job at JC Penney. Luke worked in the men's department and I worked in jewelry. I thought he was cute, but thought he was arrogant and obnoxious. He thought I was gorgeous. I kid. Eventually we started talking at work and hanging out after work. We quickly became the best of friends. Luke and I started hanging out every night. I moved in with Fran and Cindy and was ecstatic when I found out our house was a block away from Luke. After that we spent even more time together. I started cooking him dinner and doing his laundry. He built me furniture and took me to dinner. But, during this time it never really crossed our minds that we should be together. We were friends. Best friends. During this time Luke and I were always dating other people. But, I noticed that we were spending more time with each other than we were with the people we were dating. He got a job at JB Hunt and worked every holiday. I would go eat with my family and then take him leftovers at work.

New Years Eve 2001 Luke and I made a spontaneous road trip to Memphis. We had so much fun. We went to a club and danced. Usher's song You Got It Bad came on and we slow danced. It was at that very moment that I knew I loved Luke. Those of you who attended our wedding reception should remember us dancing to that song during half time of the Razorback game. I didn't love that song. It was cheesy. But, I loved the memories associated with that song. So, we had to dance to it at our wedding. Anyway, we drove home that night because we had to work the next day. Things were never the same. I wish I could say Luke swept me off my feet. He didn't. I had to tell him how I felt. How did I tell him? AOL chat of course! LOL I was too terrified to tell him in person. I was so afraid that he wouldn't feel the same way and we would ruin our friendship. I was wrong. During spring break 2002 we went to South Padre with some friends. I got mad at Luke on that trip. We saw Vanilla Ice in concert. We made up. We walked the beach. And, for the first time we told each other "I love you". After that things moved fast. Luke bought two houses in Cave Springs. I moved in with him in June. We were engaged in October and married in December.

We have been through so much in the past eight years. I was bit by a rabid cat, my dad had a heart attack, we had a house fire, I had four surgeries, we lost two babies, and we lost three of Luke's grandparents. We have had lots of ups and downs. But, I know that I couldn't have survived any of those things without Luke by my side. We have had so many wonderful times. More than I can list. We have two beautiful daughters and a baby on the way. I am so blessed.

I was right about Luke. He is arrogant and obnoxious. But, he is also amazing. He is a supportive and loving husband. He would do anything for anyone, especially our family. He is the most amazing father in the world. He loves spending time with our girls. He is so involved in their lives. He is constantly teaching them things.He is kind, generous, strong, hard working and honest. He works so hard to provide for us. I am getting to stay home with my girls because of him! He is constantly thinking of ways to make money. He started mowing yards and supporting himself at a very young age, which taught him to be very resourceful. I know that Luke's personality can sometimes be overwhelming. He loves to joke around with people and is constantly giving people a hard time. The more crap he gives you, the more he thinks of you. Trust me! I get it from him every day. Sometimes it drives me crazy! But, I remind myself that is how Luke shows his love. Lord knows he is terrible with words. I could write a book of all the insulting things he has said to me. But, 99.9% of the time he doesn't mean it the way it comes out. It is unfortunate that people don't know him like I do. I know all of his stories, his past, and all of the things that made him who he is today. He is truly an amazing man. I am blessed to call him mine.

Happy Anniversary Luke! I am so blessed to have you in my life. I love you!