A little about us...

Have you ever heard these phrase, "Just quit looking, and then you will find someone" or "It's such a small world"?  Well those two phrases hit both, Lance and I square in the forehead.

For me, I was done.  25, working, and wondering what was wrong with me.  Seemed everyone around me was moving on with their lives.  I kept praying for God to send me someone, anyone.  And over and over again, God silently kept closing doors.  I got mad, confused and very frustrated....

For Lance, I think he was done too.  30, working, just got home from deployment and he was trying to figure out life too.  God had closed a big door in his life and he got mad, confused and very frustrated too...

And then we both gave up.  We stopped looking in all the wrong places and just... well... stopped looking.  We were lost.

And wouldn't you know....

Lance came home for a family visit, to Indiana... where he was born and raise.  And less than 2 miles from where he laid his head at night, while visiting.  There I was at my parents :)  His wonderful cousin threw him a shindig and had mentioned him to me once before that I might be interested.  But I was still dwelling in my deep abyss.  I ended up going and meeting this "Lance" guy.  I didn't think anything of it, just a night out with the girls.  September 3, 2009.  Our first conversation went as such, "Hi, you must be Lance.  I'm Cassandra, it is nice to meet you.  Thank you for your service.  May I buy you a drink?" "No" "Ok."  And I walked away lol I know I know....  But I was done.  I wasn't looking.  He was such a gentleman.  He offered to walk me to my car when I left.  I told him, "Thanks, but I'm fine."  Who was this guy anyway?!  Anyway, he didn't listen to me and walked me out anyway.  I remember standing by my car and talking with him thinking, he is not the "typical guy".  There is something different... special about this one.  But I got in my car, and drove away.  And he left a few days later for North Carolina - and was leaving just a few short months later for Germany.

The story could have stopped there.  We both went back to our lives.  However, bless the college kids that invented Facebook :)  I can't express to you how excited I was to get his friend request.  Like... unusually excited.  Like... stupid, silly excited. ?!?!?  Now I know why... but then, I was confused by it. And then it started.  A little message here... a little message there... and soon, I was getting up almost 30 minutes early in the mornings so that I could read his letters, and then an hour earlier... and the ball started rolling, and the more and more we communicated, the more and more we were drawn to each other.  Lo and behold... guess who was coming to town for a weekend for a Colts game October 2-4??

I remember heading over to his brother's house for a little get together on the 2nd.  I was so nervous.  I was so thankful that his cousin and her girlfriend were going to be there.  Cause what if it didn't go like we though?  What if we really didn't mesh?  But the worries were for nothing.  Ended up I was completely enchanted by him.  He was everything I never knew I always wanted and needed.  We went on our first date Oct. 3rd.  We learned that we grew up less than 4 miles from each other!  We both had a grandma that lived next to us!  We both went to private schools!  And much, much more, like we both had two eyes and one nose!! :)

Our first picture - October 4, 2009

I remember texting a girlfriend of mine, on the 4th, and telling her, "I'm going to marry him..."  I remember telling my mom that.  I have never been so sure of something in my life.  And the peace, that rested on my weary soul was amazing.  The only thing that worried me was he was leaving for Germany for 2 years in less than 2 months.  I thought... "Why God?  Why bring the most amazing, perfect man into my life, to take him 1/2 way across the world?!?!"

Lance bought my ring, without my knowledge, on October 31, 2009.  We knew.  He proposed to me November 27, 2009.  The most amazing, sweet proposal of all times.  He would win an award if we entered it in a "Best Proposal Contest".  I'll blog about that separately... it deserves its own blog.  Of course I said, "Yes!"

My Compass in Life and Me!!

Then he left for Germany.  Not even a week later.  We had no date set, no clue when he could come home next, nor when I would be able to fly to see him.  Causes some very, very stressful times.  But thankfully, we were able to set the date for May 22, 2010.  And that is the day, that changed my life, and the day... I married my best friend.