It's official!

Looking back to middle school is where I have the most memories of when Alicia and I started out. We were both shy individuals who were terrible when it came to communication. The best way we were able to actually talk to each other without all the awkwardness was by text message. We went from barely talking at all to talking almost every day in middle school. I remember spending practically all day glued to my phone and any time I wasn’t I would have messages waiting for me from Alicia. This was our way of learning about one another and building a bond which overall made us more comfortable with each other in person. Little did we know, this was the start of our long and fruitful relationship.

We first met in 5th grade, Mr. Fischer’s class. I saw this really cute curly-headed boy and immediately started crushing. Our seating chart was often changed, and one of those times that boy was placed behind me. One day, he asked to anyone listening, “How do you draw a ship?” I turned around, drew a ship on his desk, and that was that. Later in the year, desks were moved again and we were sat right next to each other. I looked over and saw that little ship still on his desk. Who knew that guy would become my my forever partner!

One of the most frequent questions asked when growing up was the typical “So are you going to get married or what?” and it was always the same answer. I would normally just respond with an “I don’t know” or a “I guess we’ll have to wait and see” simply because how would I know? Over time, I found my answer, she was the one! Due to my skeptical nature, it took many years to find the answer within myself. It wasn’t until I lived with both Alicia and her mom (Tonya) that I felt the reassurance I was needing. Getting to know how wonderful Tonya is it really changed my perspective on our relationship. During the time we spent together, we connected as a family and handled life as a team. Experiencing that, I knew I had to put a ring on her finger and finally make it official.

Ten years into our relationship, we decided we were finally ready for marriage. Some would say we're late bloomers, I'd say you're probably right. It was Black Friday and I woke up 20 minutes after I was supposed to be at work. I jumped up and got ready in less than 5 minutes. On my lunch, I went home to shower and get ready. I knew we were going to his family's for belated Thanksgiving dinner, and wanted to look nice. When I got off work, my mom and I drove to Peggy's house. It was already a special day, with my mom coming to the Kennedy Thanksgiving for the first time. All seemed normal, I helped cook and hung out with his family. When dinner time came, Corbin specifically wanted to sit at the end of the table, which I thought was a bit weird. The family tradition is to go around saying what we're thankful for, and Corbin's aunt, Cindy, was recording. I thought nothing of it because we were going to California to see the rest of the family that next week, so maybe they wanted to be part of the festivities. When it got to me, I made the same joke I make every year about how I STILL wasn't officially family after 10 years. Well right after saying that, Corbin got down on one knee and popped the question. Talk about ironic! I obviously said "YES, FINALLY!" because I couldn't wait to spend the rest of my life with that man!