How we met

This is my favorite picture of us.  We were on a camping
trip together in May, just after we were engaged.  I
think it really shows the love between us.

I married my best friend 6 years ago on March 19.  Kevin is the reason I love life the way I do.  He shows me the joys of everyday things, supports me in everything I do, makes me laugh, gives me strength, and tag teams the kids with me all the time.  He is the most wonderful man in the world.  I thank God daily for sending him to me.  I LOVE this week every year.  I love thinking about our wedding, our dating days, our engagement, everything, I was the happiest bride ever!!!!  He did it to me, he made me love life and love marriage!

How we met...
We both taught at Fulmer Middle School in 2003.  I was a new teacher and one of the first days of school he said Hey Alice when passing me in the hall.  He knew my name, that got my attention.  I told Katie Hopkins after school that first day with the kids that i had a crush on him, but he was a co-worker, so I couldn't do more than just crush.  I walked past his room daily with one of my kids that picked up the attendance, I remember him vividly one day standing in his doorway with his hands pushing up on the frame in a lime green shirt.  I realized then how attracted I was to him.  One night after a football game we went with a group of teachers to Bogarts for dinner.  We were a few of the first there and he sat next to me.  I was so excited, then, once a few more people arrived he moved down the table to sit with the guys, I was heartbroken.  We were in team meetings together weekly, and he even let my kids "mainstream" in his class some.

Our first, and only so far, Jimmy Buffet concert
 together while we were dating.

In the beginning of November a friend of both of ours, Tori Thackston suggested setting us up.  She had no idea I had a crush on him.  I said, sure, you can say something.  So she emailed him and copied me on it.  He was interested!!!  Seemed like he was going to ask me out and it was Friday afternoon and I hadn't seen him.  Then, about 10 min before the kids left he walked in my room.  This was a normal thing, he'd come by to say hey to the kids all the time, he sat down and played with play dough with Gris while we were having calm down time at the end of the day.  Then he left.  I was so sad, he didn't mention anything (don't know what I was thinking though, why would he, the kids were right there).  I had car duty that afternoon and I knew he had wrestling practice.  While I was heading out to the lot he tracked me down and said, "I have a wedding to go to tonight, but would love it if you could meet me for a drink afterwards."  I said yes!  I was so excited, then I had to do car duty and couldn't go tell anyone!
I finally got out of there and went and met Katie Hopkins for Happy Hour with the teachers at her school, then we went and met another friend of hers, she came over to my apartment and helped me get ready, I was so nervous!  We were going to Bull Market in the Vista at 9pm, which is a wine bar.  I wasn't real big into wine at that point so Katie pointed out that I couldn't order a white zinfindel, that wouldn't be very classy, so she said go with the Pinot Grigio, you will love it.  I practiced saying it so I wouldn't mess up and I could act like I knew what I was doing.  I left with 15 min to get there and got going and realized I forgot my phone, I needed it out on my own not really knowing where I was going, so I ended up being about 20 min late (that was Kevin just said, I think it was more like 10).  I am not a late person, so I felt terrible.  The date was wonderful and I felt so comfortable quickly.  We left there and went to Bogarts (one of his friends owns it and that is where he always went).  His best friend Neil was there and we hung out for a while.  That was the beginning of the rest of my life.
The next day he came and took me to lunch and then I went to his house that afternoon and watch the USC game.  He had tickets to it, but stayed home to watch it with me!  I didn't have much interest in football, but I sure was interested in that game!

Our 1 year anniversary.  We spent it in Beaufort at a B&B.

The next weekend we went to the Carolina/Clemson game with all his friends, didn't take long to introduce me to them, that was a good sign!  We kept out relationship quiet at school, didn't want word to get out to teachers and especially kids.  We would email each other and I would purposely walk my kids by his room, his door was always open.  I loved seeing Mr. Davis in action!
Thanksgiving holidays weren't long after we started dating (Nov 14) and I had to be away in GA for like 4 days.  We talked on the phone for hours!  After we hung up around 2-3 in the morning he called my apartment and left me a message since he knew I wasn't there and said lots of sweet things about how much he liked me, but he always said, "I now understand why people can get married after only 10 days of knowing each other, no I'm not asking you to marry me, but I can so see it".  He knew after just 10 days of us dating that he would marry me one day.  He proposed just 4.5 months later!

One of our trips to Wolf Laurel with my family.

The next week he came to Rock Hill with me and met my whole family, they fell in love with him.  By my 23rd birthday, Dec 22 we had been dating a little over a month and were together all the time.  We went to visit one of my students on Bull Street that afternoon and were talking about something in the lobby of the psyc ward and he said, "I'd love you even if you didn't have thumbs".  I heard him, but just kind of went on with the conversation cause I thought he said it by mistake.  Later that night we were at my apartment waiting on Ivey and Katie Spears to come over so we could all go out for my birthday and he brought it up and said he slipped saying it, but really does mean it.  We were officially in love!