Our Love Story

I have seen this all over the place and I want to play too!

Besides, I don't have much to share lately. Only my work has gone more business professional and I am now in suits/blazers/dresses every day and had a lot of shopping to do... for being here another two months. Ryan said they are an investment for job hunting and future jobs so we went for it.

And I leave for Vegas Thursday! And see Ryan Friday!!!!

Anyway... link up!



1. How long have you and your significant other been together?

We met March 16, 2008 and went on our first date on May 8, 2008. So almost four years now.

2. How did you meet? {What's your "love" story?} I am going to try something different here...

I took a small drag from the borrowed cigarette in my hand. The condensation from one of the last Smithwicks dripped down my hand and onto my jeans. It was only my second one, but it would be my last. I wasn't a huge drinker and all that was left was whiskey (no way) and Guiness (not a fan). Either way I am a lightweight so two beers would be enough to make sure I was nicely buzzed for the party. I tried to pay attention to the girl telling a story to my left, something about Dr. Tom and a race up the stairs to class, but the painted shamrock on my cheek was starting to itch and I was losing focus.

All around the deck people were decked out in green, everything from t-shirts to hats to face paint to hair dye. Catholic University takes Saint Patrick's Day seriously. Plus considering 95% of the party goers were drama majors or musical theatre majors (and their dates/friends) it was needless to say we made an ecclectic bunch.

The screen door to the back deck opened and three unfamiliar figures stepped out of Big Blue, the drama house. The first one was crazy tall, over 6'5''. The second one was shorter than me and almost a foot shorter than his friend. The third guy was just in the middle at a cool 6 feet. All three had the haircuts I knew went with the Marines stationed down at 8th and I. The middle one was cute... very cute. I sighed and turned my attention back to the story at hand just in time for the punch line.

Slowly the stories fade and the ones who had more to drink began to get a bit ADD, wandering off in various directions. I light another cigarette, feeling the smoke burn the back of my throat. I was definitely a social smoker, the buzz felt good with the beer. I was about to turn and wander towards the railing when someone tapped my shoulder.

It was him.

"Excuse me, where did you get that shamrock painted on your cheek? I like it."

I was flustered but I replied honestly, "Oh, Katie is doing them in the living room." I pointed throught the back door towards the front of the house. "I'm sure she'll do one for you if you want."

No, I had no idea that was a smooth, opening line. If the Marine in front of me had not been the persistant type, my entire life would have changed. He pushed on and held out his hand to shake mine.

"My name is Ryan."
"I'm Allie."

We shook hands. The small talk commenced. Where we were from, South Carolina and New Jersey, what we did, Marine and theatre student. Who did he come with? Brandon (and the tall guy and the short guy) who was dating Taylor who was room mates with my friend Megan. Gotcha. "My Poppy was a Marine." I venture. "Oh yea, what rank? World War II?" he asks. "Yea, he joined up when he was sixteen and by nineteen was Sgt. Major." Ryan looked in disbelief... but it was true. If you think about it, a lot of people were killed in action and the ones who survived moved quickly through the ranks, especially if they were good at what they did.

The evening continued. My Smithwicks was gone. My hatred of Guiness turned out to be a mutual thing, so we slowly became the most sober people on the porch. He made me laugh and our conversation flowed seamlessly. Eventually his friends were ready to go.

We walked through the house and were tossed onto a "living art piece" on the stair well. I did tell you it was a theatre house. He posed gamely even though I could tell he wasn't into it... but when you're out numbered by drunk theatre people you tend to just go with it.



His friends were growing impatient.

"I'll add you on facebook." he promised.

Sure you will.

Guys like that didn't have interest in girls like me. I expected nothing more to come of the evening.

Ryan reached down and grabbed my hand, planting a kiss on the back of it. Was this guy for real??? In spite myself I felt my face turn six shades of red.

Goodbye.

That evening I plugged in my laptop and curled under the covers. I opened facebook to see a friend request.

You have a new request from Daniel Ryan L....

Daniel? I don't know anyone named Daniel. My mouse hovered over the REJECT button but I caught a glimpse of his picture. The haircut, the dark brown eyes, the perfect smile.

RYAN!

My heart skipped a beat as I clicked ACCEPT.

3. If married, how long have you been married? If not, is this the guy you hope to marry? {do tell}

According to my blog counter we've been married for 1 year, 9 months, 1 week and 5 days.

4. If you are married, where did you get married at? Big or small wedding?

We were married May 1, 2010 in my hometown in New Jersey. Our ceremony was held in the church I grew up in and that my mother worked at... it was amazing. Our reception was half an hour away at the Grand Colonial. I come from a big family so our wedding was semi-big, around 125 people.

5. Do you have any nick-names that you call one another? Do share!

Sweetheart is the big one between us. He also likes to use "my love" for me and I refer to him as Tigger a lot! He has tons of energy, can be bouncy, and he is my only one.

6. Name 3 things you love most about your honey.

I love so many things about Ryan I even gave him a book for our first anniversary called 100 Reasons Why I Love You. I can narrow it down...

I love how responsible he is... with everything. His job, his family, his career... he knows what needs to be taken care of and does it. Period.
I love how kind he is... anytime we are anywhere near a dog or a baby they are enamored with him and he is with them! If we see a veteran my husband is the first to walk up and shake their hand to say thank you. If anyone needs help, whether it is moving or opening a door or carrying something heavy, he is there.
I love how he loves me. That's selfish isn't it? But I do. I love that I have him and that he loves me as much as I love him.

7. Tell us how he proposed? Or your ideal proposal?

I already gave you a long winded response, so you can click here to read our proposal story! Long story short he proposed to me during the Illuminations fireworks show in Disney World after getting home from Iraq.

8. Is he a flowers and teddy bear kind of guy for v-day, or strawberries, champagne, and rose petals?

Strawberries, champagne and rose petals. He knows how I am about champagne... and strawberries...

9. Are you a sunset dinner on the beach kind of girl, or pop a movie in and relax on the couch?

I love either, but more typical for us is a movie cuddled on the couch. Maybe because at the moment our nearest beach is 4 hours away.

10. Tell us one thing you'd like to do with your significant one day. If you could do anything? Go anywhere?

Take a huge vacation out of the country. The only time Ryan has left the US is to go to Iraq, so we need to change that! I also looooove to travel and I cannot wait to do it with him. We plan on going in a few months after we PCS. We want to see as much of Europe as we can, and maybe one day do an African Safari.

11. Tell us what you plan on doing on this Valentine's Day.

I am taking Rylie girl to the vet. Ryan is 3,000 miles away, I have no plans :P

12. Are you asking for anything this Valentine's day?

Nope. I'd be pretty happy with a card!

13. Give us one piece of advice of keeping a relationship strong and full of love.

I hate how cliche it is, but never go to bed angry. We do our best to live by that and it helps.

Also, whenever we fight we step back, take a deep breath, and then sit at the dining room table with a glass of water each. We then talk calmly and tell eachother how we feel and try and solve what the root of the problem is. No water has been thrown yet.

14. Show us a picture of what love means to you.

MilSpouse Quiz

I have seen this quiz floating around so I wanted to give it a try!

The Milspouse Quiz

1. How did you and your spouse meet?

Ryan and I met at a Saint Patrick's Day party my junior year of college. It was at an off campus house named "Big Blue" and hosted by my fellow theatre majors. You didn't have to be in our major to come to the party, friends of friends always found a way. My best friend at the time Megan invited her freshman year room mate Taylor who invited her Marine boyfriend Brandon who invited Ryan and his two friends, Joey and Wes, because he needed a ride anyway. Yea... it is a miracle we met in that confusion! Ryan saw me talking on the porch and asked me about the shamrock I had painted on my cheek (Catholic University had a slightly large Irish population...) but I was oblivious and nearly blew him off! Luckily he was persistant and we talked most of the night. He friended me on facebook that night and we went on our first date two months later.

2. How old were you when you two met?

I was 20 (and a half) and Ryan had turned 20 about three weeks prior. I am about five months older and I tease him about it all the time!

3. How long have you been together?

We will be married two years on May 1st and 'together' four years as of May 8th

4. Where are you and your spouse originally from?

I was born in Carteret NJ and grew up mostly in Neshanic Station NJ... small small town. Ryan was born and raised in Lexington, SC.

5. How did you feel about him joining the military?

I had no comment! He was in for nearly two years when we met! When he re-enlisted however it was a choice we decided would be best for the both of us and our family, difficult though it may be. Ryan was a Marine when I met him and always will be... even when he retires. I think he will have a bumper sticker like my Poppy does, "Marines don't die, they just go to hell and regroup"

6. Where did your spouse go to Basic Training?

He went to Boot Camp on Parris Island (about 65 years after my Poppy had gone!) and then SOI and MCT were basically at Chesapeake and LeJeune. For his re-enlistment he is now going through BEC and his other schooling in 29 Palms CA to become a Ground Radio Technician.

7. Has your spouse ever been deployed?

Yes, to Iraq in 2009. We were just dating then, not married.

8. Ever been to his promotion ceremony?

No sadly. He picked up Corporal when we were engaged and I was living in NJ, he told me not to drive down and miss work, it was no big deal. Then he picked up Sergeant in 29 Palms last month, a bit too far! But I have been to his re-enlistment ceremony.

9. How long have you been a military wife?

Since I have been married, according to my blog ticker, 1 year 8 months 1 week and 2 days.

10. Did you marry him before or after he joined?

Way after.

11. How did your husband propose?

The short story, when he came to visit me in Disney after he got back from Iraq. I was still working there and he knew I loved the EPCOT Fireworks show Illuminations. He got down on one knee in the middle of the fireworks show by the lake in front of Italy in the World Showcase. You can read the whole story here.

12. Where did you get married?

At the church I basically grew up in... Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Roman Catholic Church in Three Bridges NJ. Our reception was at the Grand Colonial, about half an hour from there.

13. How old were you two when you got married?

We were both 22.

14. Did he wear his uniform on his wedding day?

Of course! As did all his groomsmen (minus my little brother), my grandfather and his grandfather.

15. Where are you and your spouse currently stationed?

Technically that is a difficult question. He is in school at 29 Palms, but not officially stationed there. I live in Virginia since he was stationed last at 8th and I in Washington DC. We still collect DC BAH and I still go to the barracks for things, such as laundry. As of April we will have a more definitive answer to this!

16. Do you live on base?

No. 8th and I does not have a base technically, it is just a barracks... so we couldn't even if we wanted to. Ryan does live on base in 29 Palms in the barracks.

17. How long were you married when you had to go through your first separation?

Surprisingly we got super spoiled. Our first separation happened two months after our first anniversary. 8th and I is basically non deployable, so until Ryan started school August 1, 2011, we did not have to be separated. August 1 2011 - April 12 2012 is the total time.

18. What is your favorite base so far?

We have only technically been stationed at 8th and I. When he did his deployment work up in 2009 Ryan was at Quantico, which was pretty nice. 29 Palms... I visited once and although the views are gorgeous I don't really want to live there!

19. Do you think your spouse looks good in his uniform?

Of course. He looks good in anything, but he is quite dashing in uniform... whether it is cammies, Charlies or his Blues.

20. Do you think military life is more advanced than civilian life?

Advanced? How so? In the sense we have to bond together more, perhaps, but there is still drama regardless!

21. Do you like the benefits you receive as a military dependent?

I suppose. I feel bad using them almost. I hate having to ask if discounts are offered (so I usually don't) for military. My husband is in, not me... he deserves the perks! Ryan would argue that I put up with enough that I deserve them too, but I still feel weird about some of it!

22. Do you have a lot of military wife friends?

Locally I hang out with one other wife Kyndra, her husband Tim is friends with Ryan. I had another girl who Ryan worked with her husband, but once my husband wasn't her husband's NCO anymore she suddenly wasn't my friend.... nice right? Kyndra is wonderful and I love her though! Naturally I then have my blogging friends who are all amazing whether I have yet to meet them in person or not!

23. What is the hardest part of the military life?

I want to instantly jump and say deployments... but really any separation. Even though Ryan is safe and in country and we can text and call every day or even visit when the funds arise... it is so hard to be apart from the person you love. So so so hard. I bet whether they are in training, across the country, or across the world that empty place in your heart twinges,.

24. Do you own military wife stuff?

Not really "wife" stuff. I have a bull dog keychain from my Poppy and a USMC ribbon on my car. Then we have this awesome sign in our dining room and a few other little things. Plus I commandeer my husband's sweatshirts all the time.

25. Do you support your spouse as a member of the military?

Of course. I am so proud of him and I will always support him.

So fellow MilSpouse buddies... give it a go! I am curious to see what your answers are!

Nostalgic Illuminations

When I miss Ryan I tend to get really nostalgic... looking at old pictures and doing silly things like that. So I instantly knew what song I wanted to do for this week's link up, Illuminations - Reflections of Earth. It is the soundtrack to the fireworks show at EPCOT.

Newer readers to my blog may not know this but I worked at Walt Disney World as a college program intern for about six months after I graduated college. Ryan was in Iraq for most of it and it was my ultimate distraction. At the time, my blog was actually named Disney and Deployed... if you cannot tell I have a thing for alliteration! I fell in love with Disney (again) and I absolutely loved working there. I would tell Ryan all the time how much I loved it, I worked in EPCOT as a presenter at Innoventions and part of my night duties was crowd control for Illuminations. So I got to be in front of the rope (awesome on the nights it was not windy and you came away with ash all over you) and talk to people from all over the world. Plus the people I worked with were so fun and unbelievably awesome.





All of these factors and my unhealthy love of fireworks all added to the story of why Ryan decided to pop the question during Illuminations!

If you ever want to read the story of our proposal (it is actually kinda funny and very typical of my husband and I), feel free, but just know I will always love this music. My friend Jenny got me the CD for Christmas and during the cocktail hour of our wedding this song played over the loudspeakers from my ipod... and my friends from Disney who came to the wedding may or may not have made fun of me for it! Ryan came home early from Iraq and decided to visit me with my family for some Disney fun. He proposed the day after he arrived.







Around the 9:00 minute mark is when Ryan got down on one knee (:

Link Ups!

Due to pain medication and other surgical things I missed this fun link up by Goodnight Moon. Have to join in! I picked Alla Luce Del Sol by Josh Groban because I am needing this song today! It is my first day back at work post surgery and I am feeling the need for motiviation. Josh is one of my favorite singers and this is one of my favorite songs by him. I find it very soothing and it makes me happy! It is in Italian, so sorry if it isn't really your thing! Plus I got tickets yesterday to see him in July at the Verizon Center *if we are still here*!



I saw this one on a lot of other blogs today (hosted by Mrs. Yellow Ribbon) and it is too cute to pass up!



Did you look at rings together?

Wedding bands yes, engagement ring no. For my engagement ring he had asked me ages ago what I preferred and thought... to be honest I told him no yellow gold. That was my only big thing. I wear white gold or silver. I also didn't care for a princess cut, I am good with basic round or square! I know those aren't the technical names but you know what I mean.

Do you like your ring? Did you from the beginning?...and be honest!

Yes! I cannot believe how perfect my ring is. Ryan did obsessive amounts of research. He started doing research on diamonds in Iraq and then went from store to store to store once he got home. First he found a diamond (at Jareds) then went to look for a setting and ended up back at Jareds and got the ring there. So he picked out the two based on his qualifications and assembled it! He really wanted to do things right and he did. I never would have thought I'd want little diamonds on my band, but the one he picked out was so simple and perfect I just love everything about it.

How often do you wear your rings?

Every day. Diamond comes off in the shower and for bed... or if I am doing something super messy. My wedding band has only been off of my hand once since our wedding day... and that was for my surgery last week. Since the way they 'cut' apparently uses an electrical current I could have nothing on at all. It did take lubricant and some heavy pulling to get it off though! Ryan held it for me until I was in recovery and then slid it right back on my hand. I was pretty high on pain meds and anesthesia at that point but I remember him putting it back on for me.

Do you clean your rings?

When we go to Jareds I get my diamond cleaned as it is included in the purchase every six months to get a cleaning. I don't do it at home though. Speaking of which, I am long overdue for a cleaning...

What went through your mind the very first time you saw your ring?

"OhmygodOhmygodOhmygodOhmygodOhmygodOhmygodHe'sproposingOhmygodOhmygodOhmygodOhmygod....people are looking! What are they waiting for? Oh! I have to say yes!" *insert lots of nodding and crying*

Dead Serious, exact quote!

Day 3

Hosted here!

Day 3: Most meaningful gift/best gift you've received


Ryan and I got engaged in December of last year... it wasn't technically a Christmas gift but it is the best gift I have ever received. He came to visit me in Disney (technically it was for the holidays and with my family, but still early) and proposed during the fireworks. You can read the whole story here.

My ring is gorgeous, I won't dispute that, it is so so perfect. But what it stands for means more to me than anything else. I always told Ryan he could have given me a garbage can twist tie and I still would have said yes!!

Even recently we talked about it. Ryan said, "I gave you a diamond for a reason. Not a ruby or sapphire or emerald... diamonds are under pressure for thousands of years and they come out looking like that. If we are ever under pressure, we will do the same thing." and he also mentions, "I had to get the perfect ring for the perfect girl." (Ok I am nowhere close to perfect, but it is still sweet!)

It is a symbol (along with my wedding ring now) of my love and commitment to Ryan. That I will be loyal and true to him forever and always, under pressure or not.





By the way, Ryan is still trying to work things out for his next step. He is fliritng with Intel (which he doesn't think he will get) and MCCS (which personally I think he will be miserable in, but we shall see). We have an 8+ hour drive to SC for Thanksgiving to talk about it! Thanks for all your good thoughts and wishes. Fingers and toes still crossed.

I Saw Fireworks...

So I am just going to give an exciting highlight and then talk more about my family being here later...

Ryan arrived a day early and the next day I had to work. So he accompanied me to EPCOT where I work and spent the day seeing my shows, meeting my friends and co-workers, and basically walking around the park for six hours. In the world showcase he managed to get dinner reservations in the nice restaurant in Italy so after I got off of work we walked over and had a fabulous dinner together. I had spinach canneloni and we split a cannoli for dessert and had wine and a bellini and it was just delicious!

I love fireworks, especially Illuminations. I always said working the crowd control is one of the best parts of my job. I always ranted and raved about it so Ryan really wanted to see the show. A friend of mine, Marianne from Brazil, from Guest Relations was monitoring the VIP area near Italy so I went to say hi. I introduced her to Ryan and she let us under the rope! It was so sweet, especially since I still had no idea what was to come. Illuminations is in three parts and towards the end of the first part Ryan starts trying to talk to me.

So I swatted him and told him to pay attention, he was missing the show! I still had no idea. So he was quiet for a bit and then the globe came out and he was fidgeting and kept trying to talk to me but then stopping. Then the fireworks started again and he hugged me from behind, and it was quite cold so it felt great for many reasons! Ryan then tried to say something in my ear but I couldn't hear him over the fireworks. Again I told him to shush and watch the show! Suddenly he loudly said, "Hey!" and finally got my attention. I was getting annoyed so I replied, "WHAT?!" pretty loudly. He then reached into his pocket and got down on one knee and I saw him say "Will you marry me?" with fireworks exploding overhead.



I gasped and my hands flew to my mouth, I was so shocked! I honestly did not see it coming. We had talked about getting engaged for awhile as you know but I was so surprised. Tears were flowing and I was in shock as people around us started pointing and talking and then I realized I needed to answer! So I just started nodding my head yes over and over again as he slid the ring on my finger. There may have been tears. Everyone around us started cheering and clapping, someone even dropped their cup of wine as they started they were so excited. We hugged and kissed and missed the rest of Illuminations, but it's ok...

We saw it again two days later.

It was amazing...

The Ring: