If you’re currently in a relationship how long have you been dating/married/etc? How did you meet? If you’re not what is your ideal relationship like and what do you look for in a s/o?

James and I have been together for 5 1/2 years, and married for almost four (our anniversary is October 13). We met on MySpace on February 5, 2006. I was working 3rd shift at that time, so I was awake and bored around 5am that morning. I searched for people several miles away from my zip code just to see if I knew anyone that I hadn’t added. That’s when I came across James’ profile. He was really cute and sounded like a great person, so I messaged him. He happened to be awake at that time as well, and messaged me back. We moved to conversation to Yahoo Messenger.

Over the next couple weeks, we talked off and on. It was difficult for us to find each other online because of our varying work schedules (he worked 2nd shift). On February 12, he kept mentioning he was hungry. I asked him if he wanted to meet up for dinner and he said yes. We had our first meeting at Dairy Queen later that afternoon. We officially became a couple on February 18, 2006, which is also when we went on our first date to Olive Garden and then to see Date Movie.

The baby-free weekend began when we went out to eat at Texas Roadhouse. I had the best steak I’ve ever had at a restaurant. It was cooked just right and there was absolutely no fat on it. The waiter said they had one of the best meat cutters in the city working there, and I can attest to that. After dinner, we went to a local used bookstore and spent $30 on Sawyer. We got him 10 books and Happy Feet on DVD. I love buying him books…I feel so much better spending it on something educational than on clothing or toys he doesn’t really need since he has plenty of each.

We headed home after the bookstore and just relaxed in the living room. James played some Rock Band 3 while I played online. Saturday, I was up by 7:30am after going to bed about 2:30am the night before. There was absolutely no reason for me to be up that early, as I don’t even get up that early when Sawyer is home. It probably had something to do with being excited about the busy day we were going to have. We got ready and left for a 2 hour drive to a city just above Atlanta. Our first stop was to the Apple store to pick up my new iPhone. That took a little over an hour, but there was no problems with me using James’ annual upgrade. The only thing was they couldn’t get my contacts to transfer from my LG EnV3, so I had to manually add them. No biggie though.

After getting the phone, James and I just drove around for a while. Neither of us had been to the city in a couple of years, so we just drove around and checked out the new stores that were there. Around 4:30pm, we headed to dinner at The Melting Pot. It was as delicious as always. I love that my husband isn’t a big fan of most seafood, as I got to have the lobster tail all to myself. We chose the Big Night Out, which gave us 4 fondue courses. The spinach and artichoke cheese fondue was so yummy. Then we got salads, which I just nibbled on a bit because I didn’t go to The Melting Pot for lettuce! The main course consisted of filet mignon, peppercorn steak, chicken, duck, lobster tail, and shrimp with broccoli and potatoes as the sides. We finished off dinner with the Flaming Turtle, which is milk chocolate, caramel, and pecans. YUM!!

Today, James and I slept in until almost noon. My mom and sister brought Sawyer home a little after 1pm, and I was so happy to see my little monkey again. Not too much went on today, except I finished setting up my iPhone by putting all of my music and apps from my iPod Touch onto it. I gave my mom my iPod Touch, as she’s become quite addicted to a few apps on my sister’s. We also ventured to Wal-Mart for groceries, had spaghetti for supper, and bathed the baby and put him to bed. Now we’re about to make Sawyer some homemade baby food! He turned 5 months old today, so I’ll be writing a letter to him tomorrow!

Tonight, my mom got Sawyer after she got off work. James and I went out to eat at our favorite Chinese buffet, and then by Wal-Mart to get a few groceries. When we got home, we cleaned the house. You know you are a parent when your “alone time” with each other involves cleaning! But, the house is now decorated for Christmas. The tree went up last night as well as all the other decorations we set out in the living room and kitchen. Now to find the time to wrap all the gifts that need to go under the tree!

We have decided to celebrate our anniversary this evening rather than Wednesday so that we would have a babysitter. Sawyer is going to spend the evening (Read: Not the entire night! ) with his Nana while we go enjoy dinner and a movie. It’s the classic date night, but it’s something we have not done in a REALLY long time so we figure it will be fun. We are going to a Chinese buffet that we have not been to since before I got pregnant, and then to see “Life As We Know It.” If time permits, I want to run by Wal-Mart for groceries, but that just seems a little too domestic for a special occasion, don’t you think?

1. He is so supportive of me. Even when others think I am doing something wrong, James is always standing behind me, pushing me to accomplish whatever it is I want to do.
2. He is VERY laid back. This took some getting used to, as I’m used to having argumentative people in my life. Being with him has helped me improve my communication skills, especially when I’m mad or upset.
3. He’s just so adorable! He can have his moments, but he can also do/say the sweetest things at the right moments. <3
4. He’s goal oriented. He has things he wants to accomplish in life, and works hard toward them until he reaches his goals.
5. He’s patient and forgiving. I mess up a lot, and do stupid things. He always accepts my apologies, and does not hold grudges.
6. He loves me for me. He often tells me I’m beautiful, and he loves me just the way I am…even when I’m having one of those “I’m fat, my clothes don’t fit, and I never want to eat again” moments.
7. He wants me to have his babies (good thing, since his first will be here in 3 months! ). He says that before him and I got together, he did not want children…actually when we first started dating, he said he didn’t think he wanted them. He now says he just had to find the right person to have them with.
8. He loves to cuddle. I sleep best when I am in his arms…good thing he never gets tired of it.
9. My parents love him. I didn’t mean to pick someone like that, but it’s great that they all get along so well.
10. He is really smart. If I don’t know something and ask him about it, more often than not he knows the answer. He also has tons of useless knowledge, which can get a little annoying at times, but I wouldn’t want it any other way!

What relationships have had the greatest impact on your life?

That is today’s blog prompt for Project: Blog…a 30 day blogging project I am currently participating in.

When I think of which relationships have had the greatest impact on my life, I can think of 3. The first would be between my mom and I. My mom is my rock, and without her, I would not be where I am today. Having me at 19, she quickly had to grow up to be able to raise me. We are still very close, and even though we butt heads from time to time, there’s no doubt she has made the biggest impact on my life. She doesn’t always agree with the decisions I make, but in the end, she is always been there, standing behind me for the past almost 26 (as of this Friday!) years…standing there when others have come and gone.

Another relationship that has had a huge impact on me is the one James and I have. I never knew real love before meeting James, and in the past 4 years, I have become a better person because of him. In my past relationships, I would get mad over the littlest things, and say and do immature things when angry. With James, it’s so different. He’s quite passive, and does not like to argue. This has made me learn how to communicate better, because I quickly learned that he was not  one to argue back with me. When the arguments are one-sided, you quickly realize how many better ways there are to communicate. We are able to talk through our problems when they happen, rather than say hurtful things to each other or keep our feelings bottled up inside.

Other than my mom, James has the been the most supportive person I’ve ever known…and is sometimes more supportive than my mom. He knows all my hopes and dreams, and wants to make them happen as much as I do. I sometimes feel like I am holding him back, since he has graduated college and landed a good job…while I have been stuck in college for 8 years now and still no Bachelor’s degree. He assures me that he finds happiness in helping me reach my goals, which makes me feel so much better.

The third relationship that has impacted my life is the one with my aunt. She is a great person, and we are very close. She’s like a second mom to me. I’d rather make my mom angry before I would my aunt. Not because she is hateful or mean, but because I just never want to disappoint her. I don’t know how to describe our relationship exactly, but I hope to be half the woman she is when I’m older. She’s the family mediator and coordinates almost all family events we have. I am so proud that I can give her her first great nephew.

Speaking of school, summer semester is kicking my butt! There is SO much to get done in SO little time. I’m managing to stay on top of things though, and get assignments completed before their due dates. Statistics is getting a bit difficult…the class would have been so much easier if I had a little bit of background knowledge going in. Our second test is Tuesday, and I am dreading it! Children’s Literature isn’t as bad, but there’s a lot to do in there. I’ve gotten two projects out of the way, am over halfway finished with the third, and have yet to be begin the fourth.

I’m ready for school to be over with, so I can get back to writing and bringing in some money. Our little guy will be here in just 4 months, so I want to have some money put back by then, for last minute purchases and things we’ve forgotten. Plus, I’ll be taking some time off after he’s here, so I need some money to compensate for that.