It was just another day. I went to work, and I was almost done with my 12 hour shift. I had just got a new tattoo and was talking about it with a mutual friend of ours. The next thing I know, Kevin was yelling for Jayson to come join us. I’ll never forget it, those navy blue basketball shorts, a white tank top, and them ugly orange flip flops. Jayson was wearing sunglasses so I didn’t even know his eyes would have instantly melted my heart. He walked up and he looked at me and asked me “how you” and smiled. I stood there unable to speak back because I was in awe of that deep voice with a strong southern twang. I just looked at him and smiled, nodded my head, and was trying to figure out where the heck he had been hiding! Hehe! My shift was soon over and we went our separate ways. Little did we know, that day was the start of something so amazing, our friendship.

So we met in November. Fast forward to April. It had been around a month and a half since I had seen or spoke to Jayson. I was let go from ACDC which is where he lived at the time. He was a trustee and would have to work certain events for Anderson County. Luckily he worked the County Fair the same day I went! The whole night I wondered if I would see him, hoping I could just go speak and ask how he was. GUESS WHAT! That’s right, I FOUND HIM! I walked up to him and you should have seen the look on his face. He smiled from ear to ear and again said “how you?” I was terrified to speak so I did so very quickly and told him to call me. I slipped him my number that I had wrote down on a napkin from the pizza stand JUST in case I seen him. All night long him and another guy followed me around like lost puppies, just because that was the closest we could get to each other without drawing attention to ourselves. He had 1 year and 8 months left on his bid and him nor I was willing to risk anything to get him sent back to Columbia. Two days later, he called and we have heard each other’s voices ever since!

It’s December 25, 2015! The county gave me a special visit to see him for the very first time since the fair. We had only talked on the phone, and I would drive by the jail just to see him 100 yards away haha. This visit was LONG overdue. I missed him so much, I just wanted a hug and to see him in person. I literally couldn’t wait! I get there, check in, he arrives, and boom BUTTERFLIES! We hugged, kissed, hugged again, and he took me to a table. We exchanged Christmas gifts and ate a hearty lunch that my mama made us. After we let our food settle and played with our gifts, he asked me if I wanted to go outside for a walk. Of course I went, Hell who wouldn’t... it was 75 degrees on Christmas! We start walking and get in the middle of the yard and he turns to me and said “you know you mean everything and more to me right?” I said “yes babe I do, you mean the world to me too”. He said “well I want you to know that you being with me through all of this, taking me for who I am, loving me no matter what, guiding me, and everything in between would not have been as easy if it weren’t for you. So Lacy Marie Baxter, will you marry me?” And he gets down on one knee, pulls out this perfectly wrapped ring box and shows me my ring that he bought from selling soft drinks to other inmates and officers. I laughed and said “are you sure?” He smiled and told me he had never been more sure of anything in his life. So I cried and of course said yes! It was one of the best days of my life and I wouldn’t change it for a million dollars.

We’ve been engaged for nearly a year! It’s December 1st, 2016. JAYSON GETS RELEASED FROM PRISON! After 8 long years, the man of my dreams is FINALLY tangible! He’s here! Like what? Do y’all know how long I waited on this day... 20 months! That’s 1 year and 8 months! That’s 664 days! That’s 15,936 hours! That’s 956,160 minutes!!!! Just let that sink in! I waited a long time. And it was OVER! Do you hear me, OVER! I had been working on our first home since July 2016 preparing for him to come home to me! My grandma had an empty trailer and she let us move in it. Me and the help from my mama, my little sister Destiny, and my Bridesmaid Heather, spent HOURS cleaning, painting, and moving stuff... not to mention there wasn’t any power so literally blood, sweat, and tears was poured into this project. My stepdad floored our bathroom and helped me hook up all of our appliances. I moved in 6 weeks before Jayson came home. I worked so hard to make sure that he had a soft place to lay his head, and know that he had SOMETHING to come home to. When we finally made it home, he just looked around and stared at everything that was now ours. It was such a beautiful moment because I felt like everything had finally paid off! He loved it. Four days later, he started work at Anderson County Sheriff’s Office Fleet Services. Yep, you read that correctly. He walked out employed. He could provide. He was the man of the house. Three months later Daddy sold Jayson his truck. He cut him a huge deal, but something for him to work for and be proud of. THREE MONTHS OUT OF PRISON AND HE HAS A HOME, A CAREER, AND A VEHICLE... and me hehe. To say I’m proud of my boy would be an understatement. Although I believed in him from the start, it was so magical watching everything in our lives unfold. Look at us now, how far we have came! We are definitely a power couple. A power couple that CAN NOT WAIT to marry each other!

Okay so earlier I mentioned that my Daddy sold Jayson his truck.. that was in March 2017. Rewind to February! So we moved! I had to quit my job right after Christmas because we only had one car at the time and I was the only one with a license. We lived in Walhalla and had to travel to Anderson and have Jayson to work by 7 am. I would stay in Anderson while he worked; I would either go to my granny and papas, or my mamas... and sometimes I would work for my daddy doing tree work... let me just say... that’s one tough job. So eventually driving so much and only having one car, living so far away became stressful so me and Jayson had to switch it up. We decided to move into a trailer that was for rent from a family friend. So no kidding.. me and Jayson left his work at 4pm. We rented a U-Haul, drove to Walhalla, packed a two bedroom 1 bath house up and drove it to Starr, which is like 45 minutes away. Me, Jayson, my sister Amber, and my cousin Kayla unpacked the U-haul, returned it, and went to bed in our new house. Whew, I know. Haha. This was February 8th 2017. We moved literally the next street over from my granny and papa. My papa is 83, and my granny is 74. I didn’t have a job, Jayson was providing for me and him.. so I spent a lot of time with my grandparents. Eventually daddy started working me 3 or 4 times a week when I didn’t take my grandparents to the doctor. Just helping out a little, well A LOT who am I kidding? Things were great, our first summer was really fun! I really felt home here, because i was close to home, things were easier to manage. But........ you know life just throws you around sometimes and you have to roll with it. As my papa says, you gotta get in the mud.

So... a year has passed. We are still in Starr. But.. me and Jayson are in yet another pickle. My papa is disabled, and so is granny. It’s very hard for them to do day to day chores and tasks. They are a significant part of my childhood and let’s face it... I’m am my papas girl. He seriously thinks I’m the smartest person on the planet (even though he doesn’t even realize he’s had such a huge impact on who I am today). So at the beginning of February my granny came to me and asked if I would be willing to move in with them to help full time because things are only getting harder for the both of them. So I talked it over with Jayson and he was fully supportive of my decision which was to give up everything that me and Jayson had worked for, move it into a storage building minus the necessities, and take care of granny and papa until I could no longer care for them, health wise. So here we are. Jaysons still working for Fleet Services, except now he is employed by the County instead of the Sheriff’s office. I’m cooking and cleaning for us, going to doctors appointments, bathing my papa and granny too when she needs the assistance. They rely on me for certain things. And Jayson is the handy dandy handy man. My papa can’t walk out and get the paper every morning, and granny can’t go spend four hours in town running errands. We are working as a team to make this as easy on everyone as possible but trust me, it gets ugly sometimes. It’s hard being a caretaker especially when you love that person SO much. Jayson has been my rock through all of this. On my absolute worst days he loves me and tells me how important I am. He tells me I’m beautiful even if I give him the RBF. He is there for me, he never lets me down. He comforts me. Honestly he hung the moon and you can’t tell me any different. He loves me like Jesus does. And oh boy do I love him. I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with him. This crazy thing called life, is one beautiful ride as long as I’m with him.

First and foremost, we want that thank GOD for pouring his blessings upon us EACH and EVERY day! We know that without him none of this would have been possible! We want to thank our parents for loving us unconditionally no matter the circumstance! Starting out things were hard but each parent shined a little light into our lives from time to time! So thank you Brian & Amy Baxter, William & Susan Mcalister, and Carlos & Connie Holcomb. We are so thankful for all you do. Granny and Papa you have taught me and Jayson just what true love is. We will always cherish the memories and lessons we have shared with you. Our friends! When times get tough we often turn to y’all. We seriously have the BEST best friends! Tylen & Melissa, Chelsea & Josh, Heather & Justin, Kayla Durham, Ryan Cogdill, Donald Dowis, and Whitney & Joshua Griffin! Also we have to acknowledge the ones who helped Jayson when he needed it the most. Previous Sheriff Jon Skipper, Gary Bryant, Bill Vaughn, Ray Graham, William Ray, and several Anderson County Police Officers that wrote recommendation letters for Jayson. Each one of you made the impossible, possible. We are forever grateful for your guidance and opportunity. We owe everything that we are to every person in our lives. We have the best support team we could possibly ask for!