How it all got started

Four years ago today was a very special day in my life. I got to marry my best friend! In honor of our anniversary, I thought I would share our story of how it all got started. I'm lucky enough to have an actual story of how we came to be. We didn't meet in a bar or find each other online - we came into each other's lives because of three special components. My parents, our dogs and fate. I never thought I would meet the man I was going to marry through an introduction by my parents, but that never would have happened if we both didn't have our dogs.

June 27, 2009

Let's rewind back to 2006. I was 26 years old, living in a condo by myself in Woodridge. I was working (at my current job). I was single and only casually dating. I had a one year old pug named Max. Max was my special little companion and my parents fell in love with him right away. Max was their baby grand dog. (This was way before any grandchildren were around). My mom was especially attached to him, so much so that she would come over to my house every morning to pick him up and bring him back to her house during the day. She didn't want him to be alone while I was at work. He was her little baby and got spoiled by her. 

Every day after work I'd go to my parents house to pick up Max. One night when I went to get him, my dad started telling me about a guy he met that lived on the street behind him. He told me that most nights 'this guy' would walk past his house with his dog (which also happened to be a pug). My dad is a pretty social guy and started up a conversation with him to talk about his dog and he told him his daughter also had a pug. Thereafter, he'd talk with him every time he'd walk by. My dog was always over there and my dad would always have Max outside with him so they'd stop and chat. After several weeks of small talk with this guy, my dad told me that I had to meet him because he thought he'd be perfect for me. In my mind, I was thinking "Ummm.....no thanks." I wasn't too interested in having 'my dad' set me up and was not sure if I could trust his judgment on men. He assured me that he was a good pick. "Okay Dad" (in my sarcastic tone). I wasn't jumping at the opportunity and several more weeks past.

One night after a long day at work, I went over to my parents house to get Max. When I pulled up and walked through the garage, my dad was standing there with a 'guy and his dog' drinking some beers. I immediately knew this was my dad's guy. My dad was happy to see me and eagerly introduced me to 'Rob' and his dog Sushi. My dad explained that Rob lived the street over and was out walking the dog that night. When my dad saw him walking by, he invited him over for a beer (knowing I would be there shortly to pick up Max). After a brief introduction, my dad suddenly said there was something he needed to take care of in the house. And just that quick, he was gone - leaving me alone with this stranger that I just met. Awkward!! We did some small talk about our dogs and how he had met my dad. It was friendly conversation but I was pretty ticked that my dad threw me to the dogs so to speak. I will admit, however, I was pleasantly surprised - he was handsome, muscular and was very kind. By the time my dad came back, we had exchanged pleasantries and I had to get going. And that was that.

Fourth of July 2006. We were over at my parents house for a BBQ and of course I had little Maxie with me. We were all hanging out in the backyard. From my parents backyard, you can see Rob's house (he lived behind them a few houses over). My mom spotted him walking his dog and hauled over to me and grabbed my arm. She dragged out in the front yard with her and Max, so we could see Rob as he walked by with Sushi. Again, awkward! We greeted each other and talked about the weather and the dogs. My mom liked Rob right away and was in great favor of trying to make a connection happen. We had only met one time before, but I could tell we both had a little sparkle in our eyes. After a few minutes of small talk, that was that.

The following Friday, I was supposed to go out on a date (not with Rob) but I got blown off. I was feeling pretty down. I called my friends and decided to meet everyone out at a local bar. When I walked into the bar - who do I sit seeing at the bar? I sat down by my friends and did not approach him. After about an hour (and a few beers later), I noticed he had been eyeing me almost the whole night. I worked up the courage to go say hello. The seat next to him was open and I sat down. He was there with his brother and he introduced me. For the next two hours, the conversation flowed. It was much more relaxed than our previous encounters and we both seemed to be more comfortable. It was almost closing time at the bar and I needed to head home. He walked me to my car and asked if he could take me out sometime. The next weekend, we had our first date. He arrived to pick me up with roses in hand. Our next date was with our babies (that brought us together) at the dog park. The rest is history!

Max and Sushi

I always wonder what would of happened if I never had my dog Max. Is it coincidence that we both had the same dog? We probably would never have crossed paths. My dad probably would not have had reason to strike up conversation with him. I wonder what would have happened if I never went out that night to the bar with my friends. Would we eventually have had a few more awkward encounters through my parents? Would he eventually have gotten around to asking me out? I guess I don't have to wonder since fate (and my parents and our puppies) brought us together!

While it hasn't all been smooth sailing, there's no one else I'd rather be along with on this journey. We've encountered our fair share of bumps in the road, but in the end it just makes us stronger. Cheers to seven years of love and laughter, four year of marriage and two beautiful babies! Happy Anniversary honey!

Our first 'trip' to Vegas (2006)

Our first Halloween (2006) - Look at my buff man :)

Trip to Florida

Rob's work Christmas party (2006)

First trip out of the country to Cancun (2007)

Halloween (2007)

Our one year anniversary!

Work event at Navy Pier

Trip to Toronto (2008)

More Toronto fun (2008)

St. Patrick's Day

Cabo San Lucas

My brother's wedding

Our engagement night (2008)

Engagement pics in Las Vegas

Wedding Shower

June 27, 2009

Our Happily Ever After

11 Months of Mason

Happy 11 months to my little man. Only one more month until I have a one year old. Yikes! It is sad that he is not my little baby anymore. I occasionally look at pictures when he was a newborn and can’t believe how big he has gotten. He is changing by leaps and bounds. He has accomplished a lot this month and hasn’t missed a beat. Shortly after my post from last month, Mase took off crawling and hasn’t turned back. He is always on the go. This kid is all over the place and I can’t keep up with him. He is now starting to pull himself up and wants to be independent. He actually loves to sit and play by himself with all of his toys. He doesn’t need constant attention (although his sister is always in his face). He is just the sweetest/cutest thing.

Mason continues to grow at a fast pace. He is in 18 month size clothes. The 12 month stuff is getting too tight. I am constantly buying him clothes to wear. Leah was always true to size. When she was 12 months old, she wore a 12 month size, 18 months when she was 18 months, etc. Mason is off the charts. This little boy loves to eat and it makes him quite happy when he has a plate of food in front of him. He is not a picky eater at all (hopefully he stays this way). He does not discriminate between fruits, veggies, meats, pasta – he loves it all. He has started not wanting his bottle as much, so we just recently tried giving him Vitamin D milk (versus the soy formula he has been on since he was born). He has done okay with it. We’ve also been giving him sippy cups too. He’s has had more teeth come through. He has a few ‘bubbles’ of what looks like new teeth that will be breaking through soon. Poor guy. Last week he learned to shake his head back and forth when we say, “No, no, no!” He is so cute. He has also picked up on how to play peek-a-boo and is continuing with his babbles!

Momma's New Ride

Rob has been pushing me to get rid of my jeep and get a new car for the past several months. Although I wasn't in love with my jeep, I was happy with not having a car payment so I wasnt't in a huge rush to get rid of my car. But the more I started thinking about it, the more I was getting on board with the idea of getting a new car. My jeep was a 2005, with 110,000+ miles. Slowly, things were starting to go wrong with it (my rear windshield wiper stopped working, I broke off the side mirror, etc.). Plus, it was a pretty tight fit in the backseat with the kids and the two car seats. We didn't have room to pick up my dad if needed and if we ever decide to have a 3rd kid, there is no way another car seat will fit back there.

The other week I received a flyer in the mail for a buy back program for my jeep. The dealership indicated that they would give me $1500 above the Kelly Blue Book value if I traded in my car. So we decided to just go check it out. We went out 'looking' at cars on Memorial Day and I truly did not have any intention of coming home with a new ride. We looked around the dealership and started chatting with the sales 'woman.' I told her my absolute limits for a car payment and what I was interested in. I've been toying with the idea of getting a minivan. I know - crazy, huh? I've always been a hater, but they have becoming more and more appealing to me. All the mama's I know that have one, do nothing but rave about them. I've never even driven a minivan, so I wasn't completely sure if it was for me. I ended up test driving a minivan and also a Dodge Durango. The Durango was really nice and I loved it, but it was huge and I knew it would be a gas guzzler (plus it was a bit out of my price range).

I was actually digging the minivan and decided it was the route I was going to go. The price was right and they offered me much more than I would have expected for my jeep, so we went with it. They had a minivan event going on and had all sorts of rebates. In the end, I am SO happy with my purchase. I ended up with a 2013 Chrysler Town and Country. The color is 'Steel' and it is fully loaded. It has leather interior, navigation, satelite radio, DVD player/TV, rearview camera and tons of storage. Seriously, there are 8 cupholders in the front seat! I love it. Leah is a HUGE fan of my new car too. She loves all of the space and that she can just press a button and the doors magically open. I truly never envisioned myself driving a minivan, but I really do like it. Rob was anti-minivan too but he actually kind of likes it too. It drives nice and we finally have a big family car. I told Rob all I needed now was my little stick figure family on the back window. (I kid). Ha!