Because she is an adorable little T-Rex.
The biggest reason I didn't get to finish that series, was that over the few days my kids were at their grandparents, I had a chance to really tear into the house. I got a lot of cleaning done, got caught up on all my laundry, and really got a chance to organize everything.
I had a chance to get everything ready for Tina.
So, please bear with me, I am about to gush.
When we started talking last February, neither of us were looking for anything. I had all but decided to stay single forever because I had no idea to drag my children with me through a series of failed relationships and one night stands.
So I picked single dad.
Then Tina and I started catching up. We talked. Lots. About everything and anything. We realized how we felt about each other back then. Things we knew, things we didn't.
We talked.
Every day. As the days grew into weeks, we started to realize something was going on. Something was happening. We tried to fight it. The timing wasn't right. We were on different sides of the country. We had five kids between us. I mean, that's some Brady Bunch type stuff going on.
We confronted the feelings. We made some hard decisions. We were both scared, as we had both gone through loss, both been hurt, and we found ourselves standing in front of a door. We were looking at each other through the glass, afraid to open it. Afraid of what else would come in if we opened it.
So we decided that if this wasn't something that had a chance, something that could go all the way, that we would both walk away from the door now. Better to leave it closed, than invite in the pain of failing.
We decided to open the door. We couldn't fight it any more. Against all our best attempts, we fell in love.
So the door was open. We stood in front of each other, figuratively, as we still had the problem of being on opposite sides of the country. We made plans. She decided to move out here next spring. I decided to bring my kids and I out to see her and her kids over the summer.
We talked marriage.
So during our visit out there to Idaho, we did. Everything was falling into place.
The kids loved each other, and they loved the thought of being family.
We loved each other.
So the timeframe moved up. The move would happen in January.
A few weeks after that, Tina and I had a reunion with a bunch of the Marines we served with. A long weekend in Virginia and Maryland without our children, and it was exciting.
There were a few rough spots, as there often are when a lot of travel is involved, but it happened. It was wonderful to see all our friends again, especially after so long. It was also the first time any of them had seen us as a couple.
Leaving each other again was extremely difficult, but we both had things to do. Apart. Which sucked.
Our kids started in their schools, mine started in a new daycare, and we continued making plans for the future. I finished settling into the house that she helped me find; she started making plans for moving across the country. In December.
We made plans for changing our lives.
The next several months seemed like such an insurmountable obstacle as we made it through our day to day lives, but before we knew it, it was here. She was packing and organizing. I was unpacking and organizing.
We were putting two separate lives together.
So here we are. The day before she leaves to move out here. Obviously, I'm still up writing because of nerves. I'm looking at the amazing woman who has changed my life right now as I type this. Soon, we won't be stuck talking to each other over our phones tiny screens.
Just 2400 miles of driving ahead of her.
And then putting everything in order once she's here.
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