Play Date to Soul Mate: Play Date to Soul Mate

You may be wondering why the title of this blog is Play Date to Soul Mate so let me tell you why! Our love story began when we were 3..at least that's what we say :) Daniel and I both lived in Harlingen, TX and attended the same church, Sunday School classes, and day care from age 3 to age 5. Believe it or not, Daniel and I both clearly remember each other from that early age. I remember wanting to sit by Daniel to color and Daniel remembers us sitting by each other during song time. We were essentially each others "first crush." My family decided to move so I had to leave Daniel heart broken (yes he was heart broken at age 5.) Daniel and I always remembered each others names but never spoke or even thought about it. Then in college with Daniel in Texas and myself in Alabama we reconnected via Facebook. Yes, thank the Lord for Facebook! I'm grateful for it everyday :)! After discovering we both remembered each other as our first crush from preschool we kept in touch online and were in contact once every couple of months. I never really thought twice about it. I just thought it was neat to be talking to my first crush from SO long ago! Then the summer before our Senior year of college God showed us he had other plans than to just communicate once every now and then. Something changed instantly one day and we couldn't go a day without talking to each other. For about a month we would text back and forth every day… I wouldn't let Daniel call me because I was so nervous I would like him even more and well..he lived in Texas and I was in Alabama! After relentless pursuit I finally agreed to let Daniel call me. From then on we spoke on the phone every day and enjoyed getting to know each other and learn about our passions, dreams, and faith in God. After a couple months of this daily contact Daniel decided he had to see me in person and I agreed it was necessary. Daniel hopped on a plane from Texas and flew to Alabama where I very anxiously picked him up from the airport. I was so nervous waiting for him…what if I don't like him in person, what if I'm not that attracted to him in person, what if he's crazy?? I had all these what ifs but both of us had been praying and knew God wanted us to see each other in person again…after all it had been 16 years!!! As soon as I saw Daniel walking towards me at the airport I was instantly relieved and knew there was nothing to be worried about. We immediately hit it off and felt so comfortable and relaxed with each other. Daniel stayed with my family for a week and we spent all day every day with each other. By the end of the week he officially asked me to be his girlfriend and I believe then we both knew that we would never again be able to go a single day without talking to each other for the rest of our lives. We dated long distance taking turns flying back and forth to see each other each month. After 7 months of this while watching the sunset on the Chattanooga, TN walking bridge Daniel had me listen to a recording of him saying some really sweet things while playing his guitar and he finished it by saying he'd need a life time to tell me how much he loved me and then he dropped down on one knee and asked me to marry him! It was perfect! 4 and a half months after getting engaged we got married on July 29, 2011. It was the most perfect wedding I could of asked for! I loved every second of the day and of course Daniel made me feel like the most beautiful bride ever. We never would have guessed we would marry our first crush but we are SO thankful that God knows better than we do and had it all planned out even back when we were 3. Isn't that so cool?? We feel truly blessed every day! So that is how we went from play date to soul mate! Here are some pictures starting from when we had play dates and going through dating, engagement, and our wedding. Hope you enjoy!