I met my DH when I was still married to my ex-DH, which was a nightmare. DH was working at the nursing home and I was visiting a resident. We struck up conversation and found we had a lot in common. He turned into a very close friend. When my marriage finally ended DH was there to help and offer advice. He didn't make any moves or show any interest beyond friendship. I had a disastrous cycle with a jerk and DH again was there. By this time I was also working at the same nursing home. After I broke off with the jerk DH was always right around the corner cheering me up. Others at work told me that he was flirting, but I didn't see it. My friends and I had a girls night out where we really dolled up. I told DH about it and he said if he wasn't too exhausted from working a double he would stop by. There was a live band and I was on the floor dancing when a girlfriend mentioned that a hunk was staring at me. When I looked there was DH. He smiled and when the band started playing a slow song he walked toward me and slowly took me in his arms. We danced and he kissed me on the forehead and sighed. That's when he told me he had loved me for a little over a year. I had sworn off all men, but he snuck in on me in the guise of a friend. Isn't it great to be married to your best friend?!
I had a disastrous first marriage, of which the only good thing was my DD. We split when she was just shy of 1 1/2 yo. When she was 7, he died. When I had been 7 years with nobody significant in my life, I turned it over to God. I said, "God, if I'm supposed to be by myself, just tell me. If You want me to have somebody, You're going to have to find him for me, because I've looked everywhere and I can't find him." Not long after that, a work-friend and I were going to a work-conference, and we stopped by her husband's place of business (he was an oil company jobber - the guy the gas stations buy their gas from) to meet up and get her car filled up and go together. And there he was! 6-foot-2 with gorgeous blue eyes, great hair, and a really cute smile! And when we got back from the conference just before quitting time, I was really impressed that he spoke, and remembered my name! I asked my work-friend about him, and she said he had a girlfriend, and no it wouldn't work between him and me, just forget about him. "Y'all are too different," she said. Some time later, I had occasion to be at the jobber's again, and somehow I found myself there again. Finally, I asked him if he'd ever been to a karate tournament, and he said no, so I said I'm going to one Saturday if you want to come. So we went - as friends. But when we got back, he kissed me goodbye. So he became my karate student. We went back and forth for a while, dating or teacher-student. I told him I'd rather have a student that will stay with me than a boyfriend who would dump me eventually. He decided he would be both student and boyfriend - strictly student in the dojo, strictly boyfriend after hours. Work-friend kept saying this will never work. One day, waiting for him to get off work, I heard an all-but-audible voice that told me, "Marry him." I even looked around to see who had spoken, but there was nobody there. We dated for about a year and a half before we got married, 27 years ago this past October.
I was 18, having lived 3 months in a new state, away from family and friends. My roommate invited me and our other roommate to go to a local swimming hole. It was a beautiful old rock quarry that had flooded from an underground spring... Once we set up with our blankets and coolers, oiled up and sat in the sand to enjoy the sites I spotted this amazing man that had long dark hair, mustach....kindof Bob Seger looking. I just sat there staring. (I wonder if my mouth was hanging open!) Unfortunately, my roommate stated SHE was laying claim to that one. Growing up with 3 sisters, I learned to respect the rule of "first claim"... Turns out, my roommate knew his roommates very well. We all started going to bars, parties, pigpickin's together. I danced with other guys, meet some and even let them take me home. The funny thing is, to hear him tell it, he thinks we went to these events as a couple...I have to remind him that HE never picked up the phone and invited me to attend anything with him, it was all our roommates planning. (Found out years later, his roommate was intentionally trying to match us as he thought we'd be perfect together.) One weekend, we all went together to a pig pickin'... whole weekend party. I got so drunk, I was a mess. Apparently, one big guy decided to take advantage of my drunkenness and grabbed my arm and tried to drag me to his car. DH's roommate (the matchmaker) was too scared to take this guy on, so he yelled for DH. DH came to my rescue!!! Fairy tale story right? I should've fallen into his arms and worshipped him that moment... Well, I'm a idiot. The whole thing shook me up...still drunk, still thinking of the roommate claim and HE had never directly approached me or anything.... I thanked him very much, went back to the party. An old friend my roommate had dated before was there. I talked with him for awhile, then asked him to take me home since everyone else was staying at the party for the rest of the weekend... I still remember exactly....looking over as I was getting into this friend's car and seeing that there was someone sitting on the dark porch and had been just staring at me. It wasn't until we were driving away I realized it was DH. Three days later, he called me on the phone and very formally asked me out on a date. It's been 24 wonderful years I have spent with him!!!!! I am blessed! But, dont fool yourself.....he can still tease me that I was running wild and loose and it took forever for him to catch me. That WE would go out together and I would leave with someone else...the nut!~
So many times, people say they wish there was a "like" button on here. As I am reading these stories, I keep thinking "like".
Dh's parents owned a farm and my parents bought frozen food and fruit from them. Dh and I also rode the same bus to school for 3 years and we attended the same church. When I was 10 we moved to another state. After I graduated from college, I moved back to my home state to work. I took the time to visit old friends and acquaintances of my parents. One of the old friends was dh's parents. At that time dh was still over seas in the military. His mom tried to play matchmaker and sent my address to him and told him he should write. (He didn't.) About 3 months later I ended up attending the same church as dh's parents. His mom was leaving the service early to go visit her mom (his grand-mom, she was 100 yrs old) in the nursing home. She handed me a note on her way out. The note said I should offer him a ride home so he wouldn't have to ask his dad for a ride. So I did. At first he said no. Then he ran halfway across the parking lot to say yes. We dated for little over a year, were engaged for a year and then got married. We've been together for 22 years.
