History

  I just got back from my second trip to Italy to see my Fiancé. He has been in Italy now since July and so we have spent over 75% of our relationship 5,000 miles away. When we met in April I remember the first conversation we had was of him moving to Italy. I thought to myself "No way am I falling for him." Well obviously that didn't happen. When he asked me to marry him, on my first trip to visit in September, there was no way I could ever say no because I knew from the moment we met that I would never want to live without him in my life. It has been a journey.
  A little history to start off with that will make sense of everything. Dave and I met this past April, a week before my 23rd birthday and a month before I graduated college. I met him at a bar in town while out with a friend who knew his roommate. When I met him I knew there was something different about him, and not because he was wearing a glow in the dark Star Wars shirt in a bar (nerd) :) We went on our first date with my friend and his roommate and when I walked in and saw him sitting in the booth at the restaurant I knew I wanted to marry him. We started officially dating two weeks later and then 5 months later we were engaged. Some may call it fast but that's okay. He moved to Italy July 8th and since then it has been a crazy ride. Dave is military and was stationed 5,000 miles away from me. Seeing as how I have never dealt with anything like this before it has been a learning experience with many ups and a few downs.
  Our engagement was not surprising, Dave had been telling me for weeks that he was going to propose. However, I tend to not believe things until they happen. On August 25th I boarded an international Delta flight for Venice, Italy. It had been about a month and a half since I had seen Dave in person, the last time (not including video Skype) had been on July 8th when I dropped him off at Nashville International Airport. I was pretty nervous but as soon as I walked out of baggage claim and into his arms everything was right. I spent 11 days with him, touring the country and getting to know each other again. On September 1st we went to a beautiful dinner in Vicenza and on our way to downtown he stopped and got down on one knee and told me he couldn't live his life without me. The best words I have heard in my life were that day when he asked me to marry him, in Italy of all places. It was good news to most and a shock to some. Our relationship was put to the test when my father and I stopped talking because of his reluctance of our engagement. We got through it though and I am now planning our big wedding ceremony that is on May 26th of 2012 and my father will be in attendance with a smile :)
  Now it is November 26th and I am now 23 days away from being his wife. (We are getting married at the courthouse first so I can move over with him) If you would've asked me this time last year if I wanted to get married the answer would have been and excuse my language "HELL NO." I was in no position to be married nor did I think I would ever want to be or find someone to marry. It's amazing how fast things can change within a year. This time next year I will be living in Italy, alone for 9 months because of his third deployment. I am excited to have this journey ahead of me and I can't wait to share the stories!
 
*One of our first pictures, after a date to Cirque du Soleil in Nashville, Tn.