A Love Story...

In honor of our 10th wedding anniversary, I want to tell you all how Capt. Mike and I met and married,...our Love Story. I'll try to keep each post on this subject short and sweet. :)

The beginning...

I was born in Denison, TX in 1968. The sixth child in a family of 4 girls and 2 boys.

Dad was a career military man, and he ran his family a little like a boot camp. Our house was "spic n' span" clean most of the time, due to our posted chore list. Chores such as scrubbing baseboards, light switches and dishes to sweeping the garage and polishing the table, all rotated on a daily basis. The flip side to his strict rule, was his quirky, funny side that made us laugh. He was the strongest man in the world, loved to tickle and made funny faces.

Mom was a stay home wife,...photographer, artist, dancer, actress, musician, singer, seamstress and cook. She took art classes, sewed our Easter outfits every year, developed family photos in her own garage closet darkroom, and sang or played music from morning till night. She taught us how to find the beauty in all things beautiful, about good manners, a straight posture, and sweet smiles.

Lee and Dotty attended private schools in Laredo TX, where they were both born and raised; met at a local dance and married young. If there are two people in this world who are as different as night and day, they fit that mold. Sadly, their differences didn't keep them together, after 22 years of marriage and 6 children, they divorced. If only church had been about a relationship with Christ, and not just a Sunday ritual...

Meanwhile...

Capt. Mike was born in Titusville, FL in 1969; the 8th child in a family of 4 boys and 4 girls.

His Dad was a good lookin' young man, born to immigrant parents who had come to the U.S. from France. He was a fun loving Massachusetts boy who enjoyed duck hunting, building things and perusing the beach for pretty girls...which is exactly how he met Gloria.

Gloria was born to immigrant parents who had come to the U.S. from Italy. She was a beautiful, fun loving gal who enjoyed the beach and was a fantastic water skiier. When Henry hopped in her convertible one day and said he wasn't getting out until she took him for a ride, she must've known he was a keeper.

(Sorry, no photo of Henry, I guess he was always behind the camera)

They moved to Florida where he made a career as an electrician at the Cape. There they raised their large family, and were married for close to 40 years before divorce separated them. It's sad to see all those years tossed away like they just didn't matter...

Capt. Mike and I lived in different states and didn't know anything about what our future's had in store...but at the young age of 17, we both made the decision to join the U.S. Air Force...