Well, there we are. That is me and my husband Jim Bob, back when he had hair, and I had a waist. I guess you noticed the trophy I am holding so let me just get that out of the way right now. That is a trophy that we had won at a dance contest. More specifically a "Twist Contest" Now before you have us labeled as Robert Goulet and Cissy King, I must tell you, that this trophy was won fair and square. Just because we were the youngest couple on the dance floor and we where the only ones not concerned about breaking a hip that night, does not mean we cheated. What a night that was.
We use to do all kinds of things. We would go out to eat, go dancing, one time we went through McDonald's drive through to order apple pies. When we got up to the window I leaned forward and said, "I would like mustard with mine and he will take some barbecue sauce." That is the first time I let my wit shine in front of him and it totally caught him off guard. But bless that woman's heart ,she gave us lots of mustard and barbecue sauce that night. We did lots of things but one of his favorite places to be was the drag strip. He loves to drag race...and I......well I was good at packing up the trailer when he lost and then we went home. He would always get so mad at me because we would get there and unpack everything and he would get in the staging lanes and then I would start putting stuff up. Something about how I was not very supportive....or something.....but he married me anyway.
My husband and I met on a blind date. I had just moved to Kentucky with my parents and started some college classes. I had the option of taking music or art. I chose art. Behind me sat Jim Bob's cousin. One day she said, " I have a cousin who is perfect for you!" I am thinking, finally someone who is perfect for me. So I asked her, "what's his name?" She said, "Jim Bob." I said, "really???" I then agreed to let him call me. I turned him down for the first date but he kept calling me. I guess apart of my northern heart had trouble envisioning what someone named "Jim Bob" would actually look like. I just new I was about to go on a date with a 9 foot tall man driving a truck that I would need a step ladder to get into, and that he would be wearing bibbed overalls, and missing half of his teeth. So when the time came I agreed to meet him, I was very scared to say the least. I just knew this was going to be the worst night of my life. But it wasn't. He was the opposite of everything I expected him to be and in this case, that was a good thing.
After three years of dating. My parents told me they would be moving back to Illinois. So I then looked at Jim Bob and said. "You had better ask me to marry you or I am going back to Illinois with them" We were engaged September 21, 2002 and married June 21, 2003.
After 2 years of marriage we started our family, and that is when my waist line left, never to return again. When our oldest learned to talk that is when Jim Bob's hair started to fall out. When we added number two and three that's when my hair started to turn that shade of "wisdom" that we all try to hide.
We had forgotten about us. I had devoted my time to the kids and he had devoted his time to providing for us. And in the midst of it all we had forgotten about the foundation on which the family started. And like any foundation that isn't taken care of we had noticed it starting to crumble. Counting it up we figured out it had been 4 years since our last date. So we packed up the kids and sent them to "Nannies and Pa Pa's" house and off we went.
My how the times have changed huh??? Well it had been so long since our last date that we couldn't remember what to do on one. I have so many food allergies so eating out isn't an option. He doesn't stay awake without a cup of coffee in his hands so we couldn't go dancing. So we went to the movies. The movies is a good place to realize how old you have gotten and how old your about to get. There were younger kids climbing over the seats. I guess I appeared , to them, to be someone who was not going to move to let them in. And out of nowhere, it came out of my mouth "what is wrong with kids today??" About that time and older couple comes in and the man says to his wife with quite a tone to his voice "well I am not sitting up front!! I cannot stand to sit up there, because it just gives me a headache! So we are going to have to sit back here somewhere" his wife just rolled her eyes.
I won't be long and the day will come when we are sitting in a dark living room waiting for the timers to turn on the lamps so we can read the obituaries, in the paper, and plan our next date....
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