Us - Part I

So I think I'm going to write several entries about various parts of the wedding as a way of thinking out loud and seeing what comes to the surface as important when I actually have to type it rather than just babble about it. I am quite a talker, but writing slows me down. Makes me think. First off I want to think about my partner, this part of the wedding is non-negotiable :)

Ryan and I met nearly three years ago via OkCupid. I had tried several dating sites with only moderate success and obviously not the end result I was looking for. A couple of my recently married friends suggested OkCupid so I gave it a shot. I had only skimmed Ryan's profile... he sounded nice and funny but it was the holidays and I was super busy at work. One day at work when I needed a bit of brain rest, I shared my matches with my friend Tanya. We were browsing the most recent "winks" I had received and she thought Ryan looked funny and encouraged me to contact him.

Ryan and I were immediately comfortable together. He is funny and shy but totally at easy with who he is. I could tell right off that he was pretty smitten with me. He does NOT have a good poker face! Now I've been in a lot of relationships where I did all the work. I did all the reaching out, all the date panning, all the compromising, and I always felt like I was more invested in the relationship than the other person. Being with Ryan was day to the night I had always known! Here was this amazing sweet guy who wanted nothing more than to spend time with me and support me. He was always there, doing fun stuff or just sitting at home. He watched endless chick flicks with me and picked sequins off the floor from my various craft projects. He would bring flowers for no reason. I felt like I had been dehydrated for years and all this attention and affection was a tall glass of cool water.

Not long after we began dating I fell down some stairs at work and twisted my ankle pretty badly. I remember sitting there in the stairwell with my legs crumpled underneath me, panicking about how long it would take someone to find me, I was feeling very alone. Eventually I dragged myself to my office and called Ryan. He raced downtown to help me get home and completely took care of me. The love and concern he displayed in this situation was such a game changer for me. He cared for me more than he cared for himself. It was clear in his eyes that he would do anything to keep me from harm I had never felt so loved! I have experience this kind of deep love from my family, but it was so amazing to see it in a partner. I knew he was a keeper.

By the middle of January, after about 1 month of dating, we had exchanged "I Love You"s and I had a pretty good feeling that this was the guy I was going to marry.

The day we exchanged I Love Yous! (I did it in the Fern Room at the Lincoln Park Conservatory)

That seems like enough for now... Part II of this story will go into some of the hard stuff we have had to deal with.