Lucky in Love

I'll admit it. I didn't mean for the picture to be that big.
I fiddled with it for about 15 minutes trying to make it normal-sized, but I couldn't figure it out. In the end, though, I decided that the picture is a pretty good representation of how important those two girls are to me. And I figured a scientist might want to know how many pores a human has on its nose.
I met Missy about 10 years ago when we were both students at OU. At first we were like most new couples, madly infatuated with each other. I'll never forget the night -- we had been dating for about two months -- when she introduced me to someone and said, "I'm gonna marry that guy." I kept a calm face while ABSOLUTELY FREAKING OUT ON THE INSIDE.
Our relationship got a bit sidetracked for a couple of years when I graduated from OU and took a job at the newspaper in Lawton. Missy still had a couple of years of school left, so we took a break. Even though we weren't "together," we talked on the phone every night after I got home from work and I think that really helped us grow closer and get to know each other on a whole new level.

I'll admit it. I was kind of slutting it up in Lawton. Not in terms of sleeping with a lot of people, but just testing the market, trying to find something. Usually it just lasted one or two dates, because none of the girls were even in the ballpark when I compared them to the one I was talking on the phone with every night. Missy has always had the perfect combination of intelligence and sense of humor.
For awhile I let our differences keep us apart. I kept a more regimented schedule, a more organized apartment, and I liked the stability of my life at that time. Missy has always been more adventurous, more creative, and more flexible. I wasn't sure if I wanted all of that infringing on my comfortable existence.
After five years of being off and on, I could tell that Missy was starting to lose patience with me. I needed to either make a commitment or move on. Ultimately, I decided that I wanted to go on whatever adventures a life with Missy would entail, that my life would never reach its potential on my own in a boring routine, and that there was nobody in the whole world better to spend it with.
At that time, I was making peanuts at the newspaper but poker was starting to become a profitable hobby. I spent every single dime I had made at poker on an engagement ring. For her Christmas present in 2005, I got Missy a teddy bear that looked almost exactly like one I had bought her when we first started dating. The teddy bear was holding the engagement ring.
Considering how wishy-washy and non-committal I had been during my time in Lawton, I don't blame Missy for being shocked that I was proposing. I would have appreciated it if she had answered a little more quickly, however, because I was ABSOLUTELY FREAKING OUT ON THE INSIDE. She seemed excited but finally I had to say, "Are you going to answer me?" She said, "Yes! Yes! Sorry, I thought I already said yes."

Our wedding was the first example of how Missy's adventurous and creative spirit allowed me to experience something better than I could have imagined. If it had been up to me, I would have had a small, simple ceremony in a church. But Missy had bigger plans, renting out the Antique Farmer's Market in downtown Oklahoma City and coming up with elaborate designs and plans for every aspect of the wedding. When the day came, it was absolutely perfect. It was so much fun, eating awesome food, dancing with a DJ, and seeing so many friends, old and new. It was 1000 times better than the experience I would have drawn up for us!
Missy has pushed the envelope on so many things in our lives, pushed me to take chances and try things I would never try on my own. Some examples:
* We've become world travelers! Since we got married, we've been to Costa Rica, Jamaica, and Paris. Our honeymoon in Costa Rica was my favorite trip, spending a few days at a volcano resort inland and the rest of the week on the beach. In December we are going to Thailand to spend the holidays with my family.
* In Lawton we bought an old house that needed a lot of work and we fixed it up! That's not something I ever want to do again, but it was a very rewarding experience. Missy had the vision for the house from the day we walked in it, and it looked amazing when we got through with it. We were able to sell it for $25,000 more than what we paid for it, and that was in the middle of the housing crisis. Had the market not busted, I think we could have made at least twice that much.
* It was Missy's idea to load up the car and take the whole family to Vegas for the last two summers, renting a house. Those were really fun trips, and I did well at the poker tables too.

I'll admit it. One of my biggest fears about getting married was that my wife would turn into a controlling figure and sap the fun out of life. Nothing could be further from the truth with Missy. She lets me hang out with the guys pretty much any time I want to, but more important she wants to help me realize all of my life goals. Recently we have talked about the possibility of me changing careers, and she supports that even if it means I take a pay cut. Of course I also want her to realize her life goals as well, even if it means more school and more student loans :)

Missy has done so many things that I am incredibly proud of. Her warm heart has led her to do many awesome things, from humanitarian work in Africa to taking care of her ailing grandfather for his final few months on this earth.
Her best work, however, came on December 26, 2008 when she delivered our precious daughter Addison without a drop of medication! Missy is so good with Addison, and it's such a blessing to watch them interact on a daily basis.

I can't believe it's been five years since we walked down that aisle. Happy anniversary baby, I love you so much.