Our Eighth

If Travis were here we would have celebrated our eighth wedding anniversary this past weekend. It would have been our weekend without the kids. We probably would have gone to our favorite restaurant, he would have given me a sweet card, that I would later put in my drawer for keeps, and he would have given me a piece of nice jewelry. At dinner, we would have reminisced about the past eight years, reliving those first years of adjusting to a blended family and yet still coming through it as a team.

When Travis and I first started seriously dating, I think he was more serious than I was. I had just gotten past a terrible relationship and really wasn't ready to start dating anyone exclusively. I was a single mom, with a house and car payment - I remember after all the bills were paid I would have a whopping $13.00 left in my checking account. Thank God for my mom who tended DJ for free and fixed me dinner every night after work. Our first "date" was a Wendover trip with his co-workers, after that trip Trav would ask me out on either Monday or Tuesday for the next weekend. As I tell it, he totally monopolized my time. But hey - I thought, "This is cool, I have no money to go out and this guy is buying." I really enjoyed his company and we got into some very deep conversations, but I cared for him more like a friend, than a boyfriend for about three months.

Then came this awesome trip to Vegas over Labor Day weekend. We spent the whole weekend walking up and down the strip, stopping at the bars and laughing. As we walked from casino to casino, with our drinks, I was always looking for the ladies room. We went into The Paris and they were having their grand opening. After finding the restroom, I came out and I almost ran right into Michael Jordan. My jaw must have been on the ground. As soon as he passed my eyes met Travis'. He was looking at me with the biggest grin, holding two beers, by a slot machine. He told everyone that he knew that he wasn't going to go wrong on that trip because I had seen Michael Jordan in the flesh. I don't think neither of us had been to Vegas in awhile, it was the first time we had experienced The Bellagio fountains. That is where we heard "our song", the way the fountains went to the music was fantastic. Can you see the necklaces we have on in this picture? As we walked down Fremont Street, there was a vendor that wrote messages on a grain of rice and then placed them in a vial of oil. We each got one that said, "Follow your heart."

Before that trip, I knew that Travis was a good guy and an awesome dad. After the trip, I realized what a great friend I had, how funny he was and how special he made me feel. I didn't want that trip to end.

We started planning our lives together shortly after, he sold his home and he and the girls moved into my home. One night after we went out, we were in my kitchen, and he handed me a box. I opened it up and there was a necklace with a grain of rice floating in some oil, it read, "Will you marry me?" on one grain and "I love you best." on another grain.

Looking back on those memories, I remember how anxious we were to start our lives. I would never have thought that my dream of marrying my best friend would be cut so short. So, today, instead of reminiscing the past eight years of our marriage with Travis, I am mourning that most of our dreams will never be, by myself. I guess that's what you get when you marry and lose your best friend.