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| At my 20th birthday party...one week after our first date :) |
1. HE GOT TO KNOW ME. We met sometime in February or March in an interview to work in Disney World. Then, we spent the summer working in Frontierland in the Magic Kingdom. We saw each other everyday, all day, for months and became good friends. I knew that I really liked him and was sad for the summer to come to an end, but I wasn't sure if he liked me more than just friends. When he asked me on a date in August, it had been hard to wait so many months, but it was good for us in the long run, I think, because we started with a good foundation.
2. HE CALLED ME. He didn't text me or write me on AOL Instant Messenger (gosh, I feel old) to ask me on our first date. He also wasn't vague and didn't say something about "hanging out" or "grabbing coffee". Nope, he picked up the phone, called me on my parents land-line (because I didn't have a cell phone, wow, I keep feeling older) and asked me out. I was so excited that when I hung up, I ran SCREAMING to the office, sat on the floor and hugged my moms leg as I tried to actually tell her what happened while still screaming and laughing uncontrollably. My dad thought someone was hurt and came running down the stairs, terrified. He wasn't happy about that, haha. But, everyone in my family was thrilled I was going out with Nick!
3. HE HAD A PLAN. Once he got me on the phone, he didn't chicken out to save himself in case I turned him down. I remember he specially told me, "I want to take you on a date this Saturday night". Wow, that makes things so much easier, right? No guessing about whether it's a date or not. When I immediately agreed, haha, he said to be ready at 4pm and wear something that was ok to get messed up. Then he said that he would bring me back home to change into something a little nicer for the second part of our date. I was thinking, who is this guy?!
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| Our work team in Magic Kingdom - Summer 2005 |
4. HE WAS A GENTLEMAN. On the day of our date, he came to pick me up instead of suggest we meet somewhere. And when he got to my house, he didn't sit in his car and beep the horn or signal "I'm here" for me to run out and hop in. Instead, he got out, came to the front door and rang the bell. He had no idea how many girls had come over to help me get ready and were peeking out of the upstairs bedroom window! He said hello to me and my parents and off we went. We walked out to the car and he opened the door and every other door for the rest of the night. Plus, he never once tried to hold my hand, put his arm around me or kiss me and never even hinted at those things. I actually wouldn't have minded because I had liked him so much for so long at this point, but it showed me that he didn't just see me as "some date".
5. HE CLEANED UP. Just like me, I could tell that he had gone to a lot of trouble to look nice. He had borrowed a shirt from a friend and I could tell that it was ironed. Even his car had been cleaned up and smelled good. It was yet another reminder of how much trouble he went to for this date to be special.
6. HE PAID. The first part of our date was painting pottery. Isn't that the sweetest?! Then, we changed clothes and went to Red Lobster for dinner. We went into Books-A-Million to pick a short story and read it to each other. Again, such thoughtful ideas. And we wrapped up the night at the local coffee shop. Each place we went, he would immediately say that he was paying and I shouldn't worry about any prices, but get what I want. I loved that. It took away all the awkwardness of not being sure if we were splitting the bill or if he didn't want me to get something expensive.
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| Headed to class at Francis Marion University...it was fun being married and going to classes together! |
7. HE FOLLOWED UP. I saw him again the next weekend because I came home for my birthday and my parents threw me a surprise party! As my gift, Nick had brought me the pottery I painted and had also gone back to Books-A-Million on his own, found the little book we read and bought that for me as a keepsake. Over the following months, he asked me on a few more dates and every single one was well planned and thoughtful.
Although Ironman really did nail our first date, I honestly think that I ended up falling for Nick because he was a "man's man". He was heavily involved in Campus Outreach and Baseball and was very committed to doing his best, even when it meant lots of sacrifice. He didn't flirt with girls and never even dated in college, until he took me out. He had a good group of guy friends that he enjoyed living with and spending time with. He loved his parents and spoke well of them. He was consistent in his daily routine of eating well, going to classes, heading to baseball practice and games, going to church and spending time on things like homework and laundry and planned events with Campus Outreach. He didn't have a lot of stuff and rarely spent any money, but took good care of what he did have. He was responsible and loved by everyone who knew him. He was a lot of amazing things. You know what he wasn't? A man child. You know those? A child inside of a man's body? He wasn't that. He was my first guy friend that really was a grown up man. That's probably why I wasn't worried when we decided to get married while we were still in college. I wasn't marrying some college guy. I was marrying a man who was going to work hard with me and build a life together with me.
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| Was and still is his #1 fan! |
So, all the single ladies...if you are reading this, make sure you date men. Skip the man child. It's only cute until real life happens and you wish you had a grownup beside you.
And men...be a man. You'll be you're woman's hero.
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