My husband and I met in the Navy when we were both stationed in San Diego, California. I knew the first time I saw him that he was someone I wanted in my life. Our relationship progressed quickly, and soon I found out I was pregnant! We each knew that we had found our lifetime partner, so we decided to get married. We didn't have the money or the time to plan a big wedding, so we decided to go to Las Vegas to get married. Mike and I were married August 8, 1998 at 5:30pm. We were married at Cupid's Little Wedding Chapel on the strip in Las Vegas. The inside of the chapel was beautiful. We had a wonderful minister. He knew nothing of us, but when he said the prayer at the begining of the service, it all applied to us, as if he knew everything about us and our situation, and was speaking from our hearts. I know God was watching over us smiling the day we got married. I honestly believe I have married my soul mate. Things have not always been easy, but it has always been worth it.

We spent the weekend in Las Vegas with our best friends, Penney and Gary. We rented a limosine with the coolest driver, Phil. He knew Vegas like the back of his hand and showed us all the best places to go. He showed us where to get a fabulous prime rib dinner for six bucks! It was a blast. Even though we didn't get a true honeymoon, it was a great time!

In November of 1998, a short 3 months after we were married, our daughter Haley was born 3 1/2 months early. Upon Haley's early arrival, I had to get out of the Navy on a hardship discharge to stay home and take care of her. I have been a stay at home mom ever since. Mike is still in the Navy, active Duty. He is now a Petty Officer Second Class, Sonar Technician, aboard the USS Nicholson DD982. Want to check out his ship? Uss Nicholson Official Homepage He is a very fine sailor, and possesses all the good qualities our military men should. I am very proud of the job he does serving our country. At times it is hard being a military family, especially after the tragic events of September 11th, as we spend a lot of time separated and there is just a lot of general stress that comes along with being in the military. However, we owe our daughter's life to the Navy .. they footed the entire nearly million dollar bill for her hospital stay after she was born! Plus, the benefits are great, and Mike gets alot of fulfillment out of serving this country.

Mike and I have spent a lot of time apart because he is in the Navy. I believe you can either let that separation distance you from your partner, which I did at one point, and let it ruin your marriage; Or you can remember the vows you took on your wedding day and use that time to reflect on how much you love that person, which is what I do now. I found this poem on the net a long time ago, and I have kept it and read it many times. This is how I feel about my husband when we are seperated:

Waiting For You Here Inside My Heart

Time away from you, could never change how I feel inside my heart. My heart will still be loving you, every minute, of every day, while we are apart. For my heart could never forget, just how much it has been touched by yours. Every time I hear your voice and laughter in my mind, my heart just soars. My thoughts of you will fill all the empty moments, when you are not here with me. And with each day that passes, my heart will rejoice, knowing I'm a day closer to finally having you back home with us again. I will miss you more than words could ever say, while we are apart. But I'll be waiting right here, my love, waiting for you, here inside my heart.

In April of 2001, we decided we wanted to try for baby number two. On May 24, 2001, the day before my 24th birthday, I found out I was pregnant!! We were super excited, but also very scared because we didn't know what caused Haley to come early. So we decided I just needed to take it as easy as I could, and hopefully make it to fullterm this time. We were so worried about later in the pregnancy, we never thought anything would happen in the begining. Sadly, on June 15,at 8 weeks pregnant, I lost our baby. The very next day, my husband had to leave for a 6 month deployment on his ship for the Navy.

Mike was over in the Persian Gulf when the attacks on the World Trade Centers and the Pentagon happened. It was a very scary time. We didn't get to hear from him as much for security reasons, and I knew he was right in the thick of things. I just thank God that on December 12, 2001, he returned home safe to us. I don't think our love has ever been stronger!