Always a Reason to Smile: family

4 years ago Jeremy and I were married across this bay at the Downtown San Diego Courthouse the day after Christmas. Why the day after Christmas? Well like most relationships that take place while one of the parties is serving their country in the military, much of our relationship was strongly influenced by the Army and its time-lines.

Well starting to write about this has me feeling nostalgic and now I have the sudden urge to tell the whole story how Jeremy and Abby became "Us". I will warn you now, this is quite long and maybe you might find it boring....So if you would like to read feel free to and if not, enjoy the pictures. And if you still don't feel like doing that, well at least scroll down to the bottom and act like you looked it over at least :)

I think this is the first picture we ever took together

Jeremy and I met around the ages of 13-15. We actually cannot agree how old we were because he is sure we met at his aunt's house in the summer when I am sure we met at a football game later that fall. Because our birthdays are summer ones and we are 2 years apart for a month, its hard to say how old we were really. Anyways, it was the year 2000 when we met and to be completely honest, I don't think we really thought too much about each other. I am sure I thought he was cute and at one point he admitted he thought the same about me. But well to be completely honest, we were both in that boy/girl crazy phase and brief meetings like those are quickly forgotten by the next encounter with the opposite sex.

With me having just left transferred out of the school Jeremy was transferring into, we never really saw too much of each other after that except for the occasional family function (Jeremy's family) that he would sometimes grace with his presence. I actually attended more events than he did being that my sister was dating his cousin and I got the great opportunity to follow them on a lot of their dates. To this day I am still thankful to my parents for their gift of allowing me to unknowingly get to run into my future husband every now and then.
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Well even though Jeremy and I shared some brief awkward moments over the years, we had our own lives going. He had a couple of relationships over the years and me, well , uh I didn't (much to my dismay). And never did we imagine on my sister's wedding day in December of 2003 as he took the bridal party's pictures, that almost exactly 3 years later we would be in front of the camera getting our wedding picture taken.

Well fast forward to September of 2004. Summer had been a difficult time for our family. We had lost my beautiful abuelita very unexpectedly and were watching my abuelito fade away from illness and what I truly believe, a broken heart. I think the greatest that they taught me was that it is possible to be in love after 50 years. In addition to losing my grandparents, I was also unhappily attending community college given that I had not been able to get any of my classes at SDSU. I was also trying to handle my first puppy and that was stressing me like crazy. And with my sister married, and no longer sharing a room with me, I was having a harder time than normal.

Jeremy on our 4 year Anniversary Dinner Cruise

Enter Jeremy. His aunt had arranged for him to get a job at the preschool I was working at and since Jeremy did not have a car at the time, I was volunteered to give him a ride to work. And though we both knew about each other, we were both very weirded out by this idea. Nevertheless we went along with it and on that first day we both strangely shared way too much about ourselves and felt completely comfortable doing so. On my part, I felt I had known this guy forever and I was so thankful for his company, how he listened and gave me ridiculous but wise advice, such as, "just be happy." Still, Jeremy and I remained only friends. In fact, Jeremy at the time was involved with his girlfriend and I could see that he very much cared for her (cringe) and I respected that and made sure to set my mind on other things. And in early 2005, I believe because I was good, I eventually got my wish and they ended up breaking up on their own (woohoo), though by then I had learned to control my feelings pretty well and developing a relationship with Jeremy was the last thing I wanted to do.

Me on our Dinner Cruise

Jeremy and I continued our friendship because Jeremy and I still worked together but the rides had ended due to his purchase of a Corvette. Because this car ended up being a lemon, we occasionally still shared an occasional ride. Then in May of 2005, Jeremy and my friendship grew to a completely other level when we both realized we were both complete nerds and fans of Star Wars and both planned on standing in line for hours to see the 3rd and final installment of the trilogy, opening night. I think it was that night that we both admitted to ourselves that we had a crush on each other but as things work out later that night, during the crazy stampede upon the opening of the movie theater doors, Jeremy let go of my hand (he still says I let go of his) and ending up in different theaters with our respective friends, we both came to the conclusion that the crush wasn't mutual. And so we continued as friends secretly liking each other, denying it to the rest of world and trying to get the idea out of our heads.

For the next several months we hung out a lot and did a lot of datey things such as go out to eat and go to the movies. Due to his lemon corvette, we saw a lot of each other on our morning rides to work. And at work, we were somehow always watching the same group on the playground, so why not stand together? (I promise, when it came down to it, the kids were always first) Yet please, no one dared ever tell us that we liked each other, because we would instantly deny it and list reasons as to why we were completely wrong for each other.

On March 31, 2006 on a non-date to the movies we were laughing and making light of the fact that everyone thought we were in like with each other. We both went out of our way to make sure the other knew that was the farthest thing from the truth. Then the movie began. By the end of the movie, we were holding hands and thus began the beginning of "us"

Without getting into all the nitty gritty here, things didn't quite go as well as we had hoped for our relationship and in May Jeremy decided to pursue something else. The Army. And though we both cared very much for each other, we knew it was the best thing for him and he walked out of my life, which he later shared with me, he hoped would be forever.

Basic Training in Kentucky

It was then I realized I was in love with him and though things were not as they should have been, I was determined to share my life with him and I began to write to him while he was in basic training. After what it seemed like was forever, he began responding to my letters. Weeks later he asked me to be his girlfriend and in October upon his return from training he went out looking for my engagement ring. Having grown up in basic training as well as learning how short life could be, he didn't want to waste time. By November we were engaged planning a marriage in May of 2007 because that was when I would be finished with school no longer tied down to any commitments. I also wanted to be married before he deployed to Iraq which was not question of if but of when.

Later that month when Jeremy moved to Texas and I stayed behind in California I received a phone call from his Sergeant who had somehow convinced Jeremy it would be in our best interest if we married in December during his Christmas leave so that paperwork would be completed in the unfortunate event that his deployment be moved up. And somehow this same man convinced me as well. (Maybe if I knew what a Sargeant was back then, I wouldn't have been so intimidated :)

Courthouse we were married at. View from Cruise

So as crazy as everything was, on December 26th, the soonest day the courthouse was open after Jeremy's arrival, we stepped into that courthouse and tied the knot and I became Mrs. Jeremy Gonzales. The very next day Jeremy stepped back onto the plane and began our first taste of marriage in the military. It would still be months before we had a ceremony with all the stuff that goes with it, and before we actually got to see how actual marriages work when you are living together. It would still be almost 2 years 'til our quirks and real attitudes came out since he deployed for 15 months only 5 months after moving in together. And though things have been crazy and difficult having to readjust all the time, I couldn't be happier to have been a fool who rushed in and thankfully he feels the same way.


Wedding Day 2006. Same dress I wore to our dinner. But I will not show you that picture.

He is still one of the easiest people to talk to, he is still my pillar when things get bad. I am so blessed to be married to my best friend. Its been four years and though its no fifty, twenty, or even ten years, we are so very proud to have made this far still together and still in love. Many of those military couples we know who got married around the same have sadly not been able to handle the separations and changes. I am so thankful we have made it through and for all the support we have had from both family and friends. I am so thankful to God for working in our marriage. I know we couldn't have done this without His blessings.

And after blessing us with four years together, God in His amazing and glorious love has once again added another blessing into my life, into OUR lives...........

Meet baby Gonzales, coming to you Summer 2010! Praise God! We couldn't be happier!

Baby Gonzales 11 weeks. Heart beating strong, wiggling like a worm :)

Last weekend I had an amazingly awesome visit from my sister, brother, and nephew. Sad thing was that it went by way too fast and it made me miss my family even more than I already do. It also made me realize how much I am missing out on my little Gabriel's life. In his 15 months of life I have only seen him a handful of times. I have missed his rolling over, his crawling, his first Thanksgiving and Christmas, watching him transition to solid foods, so many things. It breaks my heart, thinking that he does not know me as his Tia.

Then again, maybe he does. Moments after landing, little Gabriel let me smother him with kisses, which according to my sister, he does not just let anyone do. And though he cried when we put him in my car, when we reached the restaurant, he actually let me hold him. He smiled with me, laughed with me, played with me, let m hold him, and tickle him all weekend. And the cherry on top......he began to walk for the first time here with me! Though he had already taken a few steps from time to time back at his home, my sister and brother both promise me that his real walking began here with his Tia! Yeah I do miss out on a lot and its a bummer but it makes me feel great to know that up until now, he always makes me feel special, like he knows that I am his aunt and that he realizes just how much he is loved by me.

Thanks baby Gabriel (and My sister and brother, for making my weekend awesome.

**I love and miss you**

If you look closely, you will see a tiny little cutie sitting in the grass.

Daniella, Gabriel and Baby in the Front of the Space Needle that we walked quite the distance just to see. I had bought a stroller last month in anticipation for this little journey. But of course, we forgot it at home. Daniella and Gabriel sure got a lot of strength in their arms to carry Baby for so long.

The stroller we left behind. And the cutie with his thumb in his mouth.

There was a Sounders Soccer game going on and traffic cops all over the place. Gabriel had the awesome idea that me and my sister jump out of the car (at a stop light) along with baby to take a picture of him in the mitt. That is why he is missing a shoe in the picture. It must have fallen off in the car during all the commotion.

Uncle Jeremy would have been so proud to see baby Gabriel so interested in the X-box remote. Tia Abby and his Mommy, although always proud of the cutie...we did not find this interest to be a good one.