Wednesday was not the first time he'd met them, but it was the first time he came with the intent of impressing them. It was one of the most endearing evenings in memory. Mom and I were busy preparing dinner and setting the table when the doorbell rang, and my hands were covered in marinade or something so Mom went to let him in. It took awhile for me to see him while she stood in the foyer gushing that "he shouldn't have" something or other. He showed up with roses for me, wine for my dad, and chocolate for my mom. He's a smart one, totally in tune with the fact that if he's dating me he's also dating my parents. He looked good too, but then again I think he always looks good. It was Florida-style dressed up, which is dress casual here in the Northwest. The rest of us felt a little under dressed when we saw him in cuff links and dress shoes, and I think I had a smile painted on my face the entire evening. The wine helped.

Thankfully, my first attempt at flank steak was a success. In the end though it was only my idea, because Mom mixed the marinade and Dad did the barbecue. We even borrowed the marinade recipe from a friend of the family, but why mess with good thing? The wine was perfect with the meal, and apple pie finished everything off while Andy and my dad compared motorcycles to Phantoms. We were watching The War on PBS when I started to fade. Too bad I had to work the next day.

9:14 AM |

I tend to pore over my old journals and the entries in my online journal as well. I go a few years back and wonder how where I've been brought me to where I am. I'm tired of being aimless, but I'm afraid to set goals because they would most likely change before I got very close to achieving them. A good example is my excitement over getting a condo. Then Andy and I start dating and suddenly buying property could be more of a hassle than a good investment. I was told several years ago that as a single woman, I should live as though I'm going to be single for the rest of my life. If I met someone, I was supposed to expect that my life would be turned upside down. I'm surprised by so many things nowadays. The older you get, the less you expect things to change. I'm surprised when my prayers are answered. After settling with the fact that I couldn't wring out my heart like a rag in hopes that feelings for Andy would just dry up, I just prayed a new prayer that he would fall in love with me. God always answers prayers, and when the immediate answer was no, I decided to live with it and move on. Then a year passes and he's standing before me asking me to love him. I was floored.

Now we're talking about our future and our "issues" and how much crap we have to work through individually before we can take the next step, and I remember that, many years ago, I told God that I was okay with waiting for a husband, I just wanted to know who I was waiting for, or at the very least I wanted Him to tell me whether I was going to get married at all. Things like these aren't always black and white. I'm still waiting, but hope is the eternal backdrop.

8:50 AM |

Looks like I have to eat my words, but I’m more than willing to do so to tell you that Andy is now my boyfriend! I couldn’t be happier about it. I didn’t expect it to be so freeing, simply because I don’t have to repress my feelings anymore. I could tell you the story, but for now this will have to do. All I can say is, after three years of being single, he is unspeakably worth the wait.

10:00 AM |