Hello 2011!! (and a recap from the rest of 2010)

So, I started this blog with the intentions of actually UPDATING it regularly, and I realize it has been several months since I've done so. Life has been keeping me pretty busy lately, but I will do my best to write a brief synopsis....(although I'm typically long winded, so it might not be TOO brief)....

In late August, after suffering for a few weeks from a stroke, my grandmother passed away. Other than my grandmother passing away, and having a brief, "rebound" that is barely worth mentioning, nothing else happened in August (I would say that the breakup and my grandmother passing away was enough though!) In late August/early September, I ventured into the online dating world. I won't lie...I wanted to find somebody serious, I didn't want somebody who played games, or messed with my mind or heart. I was done with that. Did I expect to? Well, maybe eventually, but not initially. I tried eHarmony...despite all of the hype, was not that impressed with it. I did talk to a few people on there, but the communication seemed extremely slow paced, so that there was never really any momentum. Things never picked up, if you will. Needless to say, that went nowhere. I also signed up for Match.com. I knew of other couples who had met and married on there. I kind of balked at paying for it, so initially I just signed up and got the "winks." However, eventually, after receiving e-mails, I decided that I would "just pay one month" on match. I think it was only like $30, which was a bargain compared to eHarmony. So, after several winks, a few e-mails, and one particularly nasty jerk who felt the need to criticize my personality after ONLY having a phone conversation with me...I met Matt. Actually, it was funny, because when Matt "winked" at me on there and I read his profile, I thought "Hmm, he doesn't seem really serious...he seems kind of like a player" (anybody who has met Matt or has heard me talk about him KNOWS this is the furthest thing from the truth). But, for some reason, there was something telling me to give him a chance (I now believe that this "something" was God trying to talk some sense into me!). We e-mailed each other for a week and a half or so, and then he gave me his phone number. I of course was too chicken to call him, so I texted him...and we spent two days texting before I hinted that it would be easier to talk on the phone. The first time we talked on the phone, we talked for eight hours (I kid you not...from 10pm to 6am...and NO, it was not all me talking either. We were both asking a lot of questions, and really getting to know each other. This shocks some people when I tell them that only because Matt is a fairly quiet person--though he's not all that quiet with me--if that makes sense?). At the end of that phone conversation, I asked him to come meet me for team trivia at B-dubs...because a couple friends of mine went with me. However, when Tuesday night rolled around, nobody else was there so it was just me and him. I was SO nervous, I couldn't eat. That date ended with us stargazing at Fort Fisher until close to 2am, and the date ONLY ended because I reminded him that he had to work early the next day, so he needed sleep. Our second date was two days later, we went to lunch at Flaming Amy's, went to the Battleship, and had ice cream. It was sort of a rushed date because I had bowling league that night (oh yeah...I joined a bowling league for the first time EVER in September and LOVE it!). By the third date, which was that Sunday, I knew he was the one. We went to church together, ate lunch at McAlister's, and then each of us went to our respective houses to get ready for a day of hiking. I brought my dog, Coleman and we went hiking at Carolina Beach State Park and then ended up at Fort Fisher. Matt gave me the new Nicholas Sparks book, and after that....I JUST KNEW. I think that date ended about 9pm, and only because I needed to take my dog home and feed him, and I was getting hungry myself (and had a job interview the next day). He met my parents and picked me up at my house after four dates, and brought me yellow gerber daisies and whoppers. We ate at an Italian restaurant where I was slow eating because I couldn't stop talking (shouldn't surprise anybody!), and went to see You Again (he let me pick it out!) where we were dorky and made googly eyes and held hands the whole time. We even laughed together when I about tripped walking UP the stairs...yeah...I'm cool, I know :) Just twelve days after our first date, Matt asked me to be his girlfriend right before going to lunch after church. He asked if he could turn my Claddagh ring.

I had a job interview in September, it didn't work out. In October, I had my party celebrating me NOT getting married to a loser (otherwise known as what would have been my wedding day). My best friend and her husband came, as well as my ex-boyfriend (whom I'm actually friends with), as well as Matt. We had a blast, and I hated it when the weekend ended. I then went to Knoxville for a job interview that ultimately didn't pan out, either. At the end of October, Matt took me to the mountains. He'd never been. We went to the Biltmore House, Mount Mitchell, Chimney Rock, Lake Lure, and Great Smoky Mountain National Park. We laughed, had a blast, and I felt closer to him after that weekend than I ever had before. We hiked (a lot) and I felt our bond grow even deeper. From the beginning, we began to develop the kind of relationship where we are best friends, and feel as if we'd known each other for years.

Early November, I had another job interview that ultimately, did not work out. Matt also asked me to marry him at the top of a ferris wheel one night when we were at the fair. While he DID give me a ring, it wasn't "the ring" and I wanted to keep it "on the downlow" until I officially had the ring. I had some concerns with how people would view that, and wanted to let our relationship grow even further before announcing it to family and the general population (although, close friends knew!!). Matt had already met my good friend Alexis and my bff Mo at this point, but he hadn't met my girl Krystal, so he came with me to her son's birthday party. Matt spent Thanksgiving with me and my family, and spoiled me on my birthday by giving me a red Wii, buying me flowers, chocolates, and taking me out to dinner at a Japanese Steakhouse (even though he's not crazy about Japanese food!!)

That brings us to the month of December. I've had a few job interviews, and actually have a second interview on Tuesday in Winston-Salem, even have a job interview in Asheville this Thursday. Have had a phone interview, and one in Wilmington for a place in Statesville. I spoiled Matt rotten with gifts, and two days before Christmas, he "surprised" me by taking me to the mall to pick out my engagement ring. He spent all of Christmas weekend with me and my family, and spoiled me further by buying me a kindle AND an iPod touch. (seriously...he spoils me rotten, but I do not ever take it for granted!!!). On December 29, 2010 I got the message that my engagement ring had come in...so went to pick it out, he paid for it, and Matt took me to Fort Fisher and proposed in the little gazebo we sat in on our first date. He got down on one knee and said something to the effect of "Miss Courtney I love you and want you in my life for life"....I mean, I KNEW it was coming, I had just went with him to pick up the ring, but he had promised to get down on one knee when I got the real ring. We waited until the next day and broke the news to my family.

I think a lot of people are surprised...and a lot of people aren't. I know there are people who probably think I'm absolutely NUTS...and honestly...I'm so happy that I just couldn't care less what others think. I have struggled for a long time with being a people pleaser. For the first time in my life, I'm truly happy in a relationship. I won't say that I'm perfect, or that Matt's perfect, but I truly know that we are perfect for each other. I've never had a relationship be this happy or healthy before. In the past, I've often felt lonely and isolated with the people I've been with. Matt and I can sit around for hours doing nothing, or not even saying a word and it's just comforting having him in the same room. He believes in me unconditionally, and encourages me to do accomplish my dreams, no matter what they may be. I know that we have discussed me going back to school, or even possibly changing career paths, and all he wants is for me to be happy. He makes me laugh, and he's there for me when I'm having a bad day or feel like everything is falling apart. He told me in the beginning that he would go with me wherever I got a job. He's willing to do absolutely whatever he can for me, and that is so amazing. He even serves me breakfast in bed if not once a week, once every other week, and when he cooks me dinner, he brings my plate to me. It's crazy to think how far we've come in such a short time, but he is my best friend, soul mate, love of my life, and what they say is true...when you know, you know.

I rang in 2011 the other day with my good friend Angie at her anniversary party in Gastonia. I am really excited to this year, and looking forward to what's coming next. I am becoming an aunt in just a couple of months, and couldn't be more thrilled. I'm so happy that I've finally met the one I'm supposed to be with. I wish all of you blessings and joy in 2011!!

By the way, I'm sorry if this is outrageously long. Kudos to those who have actually taken the time to read the whole thing :)