Calydays

I met my husband for the first time on January 14, 2018. My best friend, Lacey, just happened to be married to his best friend, Tory, and yet we had never before met! Lacey texted me that Sunday morning to let me know that the “friend” she had been wanting to introduce me to for months was going to be at church. Not only at church, but sitting in the same row right next to me because Tory played the drums and wouldn’t be sitting with us for the majority of the time. I wasn’t super interested in finding a man at this point in my life – love hadn’t been going so well for me if I’m being honest! But, Lacey and Tory had been wanting us to meet for so long I figured he must at least be a nice guy and I’d shoot him a warm smile and that’d be all!

Shoot a warm smile was exactly what I did. And that was all I did. I didn’t introduce myself to him or talk to him. I offered him a mint. Yep, you read that right, a mint. That was it. If you’re curious, I thought he was EXTREMELY handsome. He was sitting down when I got to church that morning in his cowboy hat, starched jeans, button down shirt and vest. I hadn’t even seen his face yet and I knew he was handsome. I had butterflies. In the house of the Lord, at that! Okay, anyways. So we didn’t talk that morning. A few hours after church, Mr. Handsome messaged me on Facebook and apologized for not introducing himself earlier in the day and told me he thought I was super beautiful. I apologized for not introducing myself too, as it was MY church home he was attending. We ended up messaging back and forth until about three in the morning, when he fell asleep. The next morning was my first day of nursing school, but I just didn’t want to stop talking to him!

The next day, January 15, we went on our first date! We met at Texas Roadhouse that evening (Tory told him I LOVED Texas Roadhouse, but truth be told, my ex and I went there so often that I actually despised it, and I was less than thrilled that’s where Garrett wanted to go – later I found out he thought I loved it! So funny to think about now!) and we ate and talked for all of 40 minutes before going our separate ways. I did the majority of the talking because Garrett was extremely nervous. He walked me to my car and hugged me goodbye and we went on our way. Shortly after leaving, he texted me that I should turn my headlights on because they weren’t on and it was dark. I was so embarrassed. It should be noted that (I didn’t learn this part until we had been together a few months) Garrett was not going to text me after dinner! He told me he wasn’t sure how I felt and didn’t want to seem clingy, overwhelming, or annoying! I felt rushed out by our waiter but he thought I was trying to ditch out early because I didn’t like him! HAHAHA! I still laugh about that!!

Okay, so the next day we went to lunch and to run errands that Garrett didn’t even really need to do, he just wanted to hangout but still didn’t want to seem clingy or annoying! I was swooning over already at this point so driving him around Denton to get dog food didn’t seem so bad. Then the next day we went on another date. And this date was my favorite date of them all. He took me to the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo! I’d been there a million times before so it wasn’t anything super wild or crazy for me, but we had such a good night. We didn’t actually have plans to go do anything, so I dressed in super hole-y jeans and cute new booties. It was freezing outside, but I didn’t think I’d need to have layers or be super warm for anything. HA! So we ended up at the FWSSR and I was walking around FREEZING! Garrett was holding me as close to him as we could comfortably be. He opened every door for me between the truck and restaurants just like a gentlemen should (and he still does this)! He walked me through the exhibits trying to buy me everything I looked at (I refused all offers). Then, we went to the rodeo. We had about an hour wait before it started and we stood outside the rodeo arena and he held my hand, hugged me tight, pulled me closer any time anybody walked by. He felt home-y. Have you ever felt that way about someone? I was surprised to think that I felt that way, but I did! I remember thinking “Wow, he’s proudly holding me and hugging me in front of all these other people?!” We watched the rodeo and then he took me to the Coors Light Afterparty where he twirled me around the dance floor all night long. It was like a dream. That was the night I knew I was going to marry him.

The next day I told my besties, Lacey and Cassie, my mom and my sister-in-law that I was going to marry Garrett. Pretty much all of them were just like “mhmm, okay” except for Lacey. She said she already knew it.

For the next two weeks, Garrett and I saw each other at some point every single day. Dinners, hanging out at his apartment, sitting in his truck, the rodeo, whatever we could find to do and be together, we did it! At some point during these two weeks, Garrett asked me to be his girlfriend, but told me he really wanted to ask my dad if he was okay with it first. LIKE WHAT?! It doesn’t get more gentleman than that. However, I told him my dad wouldn’t mind and that he could consider me his girlfriend without that step. HAHA! Also during those two weeks, we said we loved each other. Yep. Two weeks in. That’s right. We were sitting in Garrett’s truck listening to music and talking after eating dinner at Uncle Julio’s. We usually sat in the truck and talked a while before going inside or going our separate ways. At least once a night for about six days he would just look at me and grin and not say anything. I’d always say “what?!” and kind of giggle because I wanted to know what was on his mind. He would just smile and say “Nothing!” Well, after too many times of that going by, he did his silence smile and I said “I think I love you”. It was like word vomit and I felt like I was going to throw up after saying it. But to my surprise, he said “Why do you think I’ve been just looking at you and smiling for a week now? I’ve been wanting to tell you ‘I love you’ but I didn’t want you thinking I was crazy!”

So there we had it. It seemed so real. It was only a few days later that we talked about wanting to be married and what having a family together would look like. He was living in an apartment in Fort Worth and working in Fort Worth, too. I was going to school in Gainesville four days a week but we decided that I should move in. So, three weeks after having started dating, I moved in with him!!!!

Y’all are probably reading this thinking “geez girl, slow down” or maybe “this sounds like a crock of crap” but we did not slow down and this is all truth! Lol. So it began! We got a puppy, Diesel, for Garrett’s already puppy, Bear, and started our little family with two dogs and two people in love! We talked about marriage and finding a house when the apartment lease was up in June. We talked about having babies and doing life together and it all sounded so perfect. Wellllllll. Sometime in March, Garrett and I found out we were PREGNANT! I remember taking the test and seeing the positive result after about twelve seconds. I’m not even joking. So I took another and I think it turned positive after maybe ten seconds. I was definitely pregnant. I bawled and panicked and had so many emotions. When Garrett got home from work that day, he wrapped me in his arms, told me that everything was going to be absolutely okay and that he would spend the rest of his life making sure the baby and I had an amazing life. That same day, Garrett said he wanted to get married (which we had already talked about so many times, and he had already planned to propose sometime that same year), and I completely agreed! So we started the wedding planning.

For the record, let me state that we never ONCE felt pressured to get married because I was pregnant! We already knew we wanted to get married, but just didn’t have a time set in place! We felt like it was the perfect time and it was what we both wanted!

So, I found my dream venue – Red Barn Events in Aubrey – and I booked the first open date they had – Saturday, May 26, 2018! We had less than two months to throw our wedding together, which was super stressful. I had the worst “morning sickness” that lasted ALL DAY LONG, and I was in nursing school! But somehow, by the grace of God, and thanks to my parents, we had the most perfect, beautiful, absolute DREAM wedding. I wore the most beautiful dress that was most definitely my fairytale dream dress, and only $400 to top it off! We had the dreamiest set up and the best friends and our closest family there. It was everything I ever imagined my wedding would be. Looking back, I could’ve married him wearing a toe sack in the middle of our tiny apartment and it would’ve been perfect. But nonetheless, I’m so thankful we got to have our dream wedding. And of course now we have our baby BOY who is absolutely perfect and the biggest blessing we could have ever received!

Quick pause for a funny story (well actually two)! I have always said I will NEVER drive a mini van and even prayed that my future husband would never suggest I get one (dramatic, I know, but I’m serious)! So, Tory, the friend who I talked about at the beginning of this saga, was the officiant at our wedding; I told him to sneak into Garrett’s vows that he would never make me drive a minivan without Garrett knowing. He did! And everyone gave a big laugh whenever they heard it! Garrett had no idea!! Lol. Second funny story: After we said our vows, we were taking our family pictures then pictures with the bridal party/groomsmen like most do! Well, halfway through the pictures I looked down and the stone in my ring was GONE. It had FALLEN OUT of my ring!!!!! Everyone was panicking and searching for it and it was nowhere to be found (still to this day, even)! I was so smitten that nothing could bring down my night. So I just wore my wedding band all night! I ended up getting my ring replaced and laughed it off even on my wedding day, but how horrible right?!?!!? Haha! Okay, back to the story.

he said for two months he wouldn’t cry when I walked down the isle, but he did!

I wouldn’t change a single thing about how our story played out. Neither would Garrett, he says! We fell in love fast and hard. We had so many people doubt and criticize our choices. But none of that mattered. We had each other and we knew we wanted to spend a lifetime together. I would find Garrett in a million lifetimes. He’s the love of my life, my better half, and my safe house. And I’m so thankful God brought us together in His church that day.

Now, we’ve moved to a tiny town with a population of about 100 people! We live on tons of land and raising our son and our dogs to love the country and outdoors. Garrett had fulfilled his promise of giving Wade and I the best life we could possibly have and without him none of this would be possible. So if you’re out there looking for love, or maybe having given up on love, hang in there! It can happen in the fourth row at church or maybe at a rodeo or maybe in Cowboy Chicken (our second date). Get a prayer journal. Pray for your future spouse. I look back in my prayer journal from before I met Garrett and after meeting him and read the prayers I wrote for my future husband. God made the perfect one for me and answered every prayer and more.

XO, Caly

**All wedding photography taken by Amanda McLaughlin!**