The Life and Times

If you require eyeglasses for reading, I suggest you don them, as this is going to be a LONG post ....


So, today is Robert and my second wedding anniversary, and this weekend I have learned a lot about myself, about my family, and my future.

Foremost today, I look back on our wedding day two years ago which, not unlike many portions of my life this far, was nothing short of very, very eventful. (Those of you who were kind enough to still attend our beach wedding during Hurricane Hanna in Atlantic Beach two years ago know exactly what I mean.) It was certainly a day to remember, just as this weekend has been for me.

This day has been as much about reflection as it has been about gratitude and thankfulness.

As much as Robert likes to deny this, I knew that I was going to marry him the very moment that I met him. For those of you who don't know the story of our beginning, here it is ...

The year was 1999, and Robert was a freshman at NC State while I was a freshman at UNC. We were both from Greensboro but had never met before, despite our knowing many mutual friends. It was a Saturday night, and I, having recently been through some personal difficulties, planned to stay in for the night. My suite mates, two wonderful girls from Eastern NC, were loudly enjoying some Backstreet Boys on their CD player (yes, this was before the days of I Pods). At the time, in Granville Towers, we stayed in rooms (two people per room) that were adjoined by one bathroom. Fairly early in the evening there was a slight tapping at my bathroom door, while I was in my room "minding my own business." Who would've known that on the other side of my door was the beginning of the rest of my life!

As I remember it, Robert was on the other side of the door, asking to come hang out in my room (I was playing either Led Zeppelin or the Beatles ... still up for debate!) because he could no longer stand the music my suite mates were playing. Well, one thing led to another, and before we knew it (and after several beers), we were grooving together on the dance floor of a UNC fraternity house. And the rest is history ...

I knew that he was very special the moment I met him, and I was very certain of this as I introduced him to my incredible family, and as he introduced me to his.

The strength of our love was affirmed a few years later as my father was diagnosed with end stage colon cancer in 2003 and when he ultimately passed away on my 23rd birthday in March of 2004. There is no way I would have made it through this time of my life without the support of my family and friends, but mostly Robert. This is when I really started to believe that we were meant to be together.

As college ended, we decided to live together for about a year in Greensboro (yes, we lived "in sin" ... say what you will) before I returned to UNC for Nursing School and Robert for his MHA. These might have been some of the happiest days of our lives. We made fantastic and lasting friendships while we were in school there. We lived within walking distance from the Dean Dome and within driving distance from Forest's favorite dog park in Carrboro ... pure bliss!

This all brings us to our life here in Greensboro. Robert received a wonderful job offer as the Administrator Fellow at Moses Cone Health System in Greensboro, and I quickly landed a job in the Surgical ICU there as my first job out of nursing school. Since then, Robert has earned the wonderful (and stressful) opportunity of being the Administrative Director of Moses Cone's hospitalists' group. Life was hectic and grand as we anxiously awaited the months before our September 2008 wedding and soon thereafter the birth of our first child.

Leave it to me to plan a wedding on the North Carolina coast during hurricane season!

Here's where I get defensive ... yes, there was a confirmed Category 2 hurricane my wedding weekend (her name was Hanna ... that B@#&*!).

Yes, many people RSVP'd "yes" and did not come.
Yes, we lost shingles on the house my family rented the weekend of the wedding.
Yes, several people texted the bride to find out if the wedding was still even happening. (Just a tip for the future ... never text the bride to find out these kind of details!)
Yes, the wedding venue lost power the morning of the wedding.
Yes, the wedding planner (God bless her) was sweeping sand from the 'altar' minutes before the ceremony.
Yes, the bride and groom didn't care (thanks to Xanax) and still got married ...

You don't quite know what life (or God) is going to throw at you until you experience it yourself. The day my father died on my birthday, I truly thought I was "done" for a while. Then, I had a hurricane on my wedding day, and I thought, REALLY?

This all leads up to the day that our little Jack was born. I won't get into personal details because you can find all of those on earlier blog posts. But, it just seems to me that when things seem tough, they get tougher ... but then, out of the blue, they get easier! (Jack's doing GREAT, by the way!)

We recently just surprised our Mom with a wonderful surprise 60th Birthday Party last night (I hope you were surprised!) at my house. No words or gifts could ever express how much we love you, Mom and Ci Ci! And, let me just tell you -- it was almost as much fun to host the party as it was to set up for the party with my sisters and their hilarious families with six kids under the age of 6! (Thank goodness for Miller Lite!)

Throughout my short (and some days long) 29 years on this earth, I am fortunate to have found that I am just as blessed as I am challenged, and that the birth of my special boy is just one of those many blessings that I have grown to be thankful for. I mean, the kid rolled over eight times with his aunt Kasey this past weekend. (Babies don't usually do this until 4 months and he's only 3 months old, by the way! Kasey, can you move in to be our personal therapist?!?!?)

I like to think of the challenges and feelings I have experienced as practice for my real life, because nothing I have ever experienced could have prepared me for when my baby boy was born (being"chromosomally enhanced" and all).


So today, being our anniversary and all, I choose to remember the day I met Robert as the day my life truly began ...


To reckon with the days that have ensued, and to celebrate the days that have come to chance.

To my Dear Husband and Sweet Baby Boy

I remember Robert's contagious spirit and his beautiful smile.
For his love of good music, I'd been waiting a while.

The look in his eyes every time we kissed,
Is something that I couldn't have possibly missed.

Life was unstoppable, pure and fun
But little did we know, our web was newly spun.

Our lives blended together, fast and true,
No one knew exactly what could ensue.

As my father passed away, my days turned gloom,
But with His true love, good days did resume.

With our past behind us, we married soon thereafter
Thinking our life now would be nothing but laughter.

Having children was always a part of our scheme,
Future doctors and lawyers were of what we dreamed.

But our little Jack came along and taught us the truth
About loving forever and keeping our youth.

There are engineers, police officers, and teachers galore
But there is only one single Jack, whom we adore.

For he will teach us more about life and about love Than we could ever learn from God or our angels above.

I love you so much, Robert. Happy 2nd Anniversary!