Most of you know I’m not real big on the memes around here. Not because I don’t like reading them–I’d actually be happy to read memes filled out by my friends for hours–I just don’t usually DO them.
(Which would, of course, explain why, if you’ve tagged me for one, I probably haven’t done it. It’s not because I don’t like you. Honest.)
Occasionally, in this great and vast interweb world, there is found a meme so wide spread, of such great proportions, so exceptionally grandiose, that it would almost be blogger sin not to complete it.
No, I’m not talking about the “25 Random Things About Me.”
The only other time I’ve done a meme in the history of this bloggity spot, it involved random things and while we all know I could certainly pull 25 MORE out of my fuzzy head, I’ll spare your sensitive hearts.
And besides? You want your fill of Random Things? Just log in to Facebook and you’ll read approximately 76,500 random things and ABC’s about everyone and their cousin, brother, uncle and long-lost childhood best friend. That’ll keep ya busy for a while and fill your need for The Random.
(Of course, if you actually log in to Facebook more often than once a week, you probably aren’t quite as overwhelmed with the number of Random Things out there as those of us who are members of the group “I’m a Facebook Slacker and Proud of It!”)
So ANYway. Now that I’ve talked about nothing, lost your interest and been completely RANDOM, I’ll get on to the meme I was planning on doing here.
(Clearly, I’m all about following the rules of writing and blogging today. Rambling, random-ness and memes. Notice a theme emerging?)
So all that to say I’m sure you’ve seen the Love/Spouse/Significant Other meme going around the past couple months. I mean, who hasn’t?
Oh. I’m the only one who’s seen it 50 billion times? Oh well. Humor me.
The truth is, I just feel like talking about my guy. Because I love and adore and fall head over heels for him every single day.
(And he went on a 44-mile bike ride this morning–BEFORE WORK–and he lived to tell about it and I’m so stinkin proud of him.)
So. THE MEME/QUIZZY thing. That’s right. That IS the goal here.
(Warning: the one or two word answers you’re used to on these things? Don’t expect them. Come on, people, this is me, the Queen of The Ramble you’re talking to. Keeping with The Theme and all that.)
♥ What are your middle names? David and Marie. His parents just liked biblical names. (I think. I’m totally making that up, but hey, his dad’s a pastor and all their kids have biblical names, so, you know. It fits.) Mine first belonged to my grandmother and great-grandmother. For years when I was little, I actually planned to name my daughter completely after my beautiful great-grandmother, whose name was… wait for it… Mabel Marie. My Gram, great aunt and my mom eventually talked me out of it. I know–what’s wrong with these people?
♥ How long have you been together? Together for over six years and married for four years, eleven months and 16 days.
♥ How long did you know each other before you started dating? Weeeeell, if you want to be technical, we first met when I was 14 and he was 21. But, ya KNOW, there wasn’t much attraction there because, well, HELLO? The age difference. Being that I was indeed 14, wearing jean jumpers and oversized tennis shoes with my glasses and straight hair to my hips (all my own sense of what I called “style”–not my mom’s–she just paid for the clothes) John didn’t exactly remember me much that first meeting. So when we “re-met” several years later, it was only about a (gulp) month or so before we were officially “together.”
♥ Who asked whom out? He said, “Um, what would you think if I talked to your dad about beginning a serious relationship with you that could lead to marriage?” You figure it out.
♥ How old are each of you? Okay. You’re not allowed to laugh. Well, maybe you are. Anyway. I’m 23. And John is old. I won’t say just how old, but just know that as of a couple days ago, he left his twenties. I know. Discreet.
♥ Do you have any children together? Troy, three and Merritt, one. And two little ones waiting for us in heaven.
♥ What about pets? Fat Cat, otherwise known as Gracie. Our Australian Shepherd went to live with her Border Collie cousin when John was deployed and I lost my sanity, what with the two babies and wild dog. I needed help.
♥ Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple? The one we’re in the middle of right now. But you know what they say–what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, and we’re definitely–DEFINITELY–stronger and closer than ever because of it.
♥ Did you go to the same school? Heh. Being that I was starting kindergarten when John was in junior high… nope.
♥ Are you from the same hometown? Me=California desert. Him=the tip top of the Rocky Mountains. Opposites attract and all that. I also like to say I married him for his hometown. It’s my personal happiest place on earth.
♥ Who is the smartest? I’m not saying I’m stupid or anything (hey, my grandpa–an engineer for Boeing–used to send me money as congrats for my standardized test scores. And I did graduated with a 4.0. Not that I’m bragging. Of course.) but, BUT, John is the brains around here. Like, as in, SERIOUS brains.
♥ Who is more sensitive? Ha. Haha. HAHAHA. Me.
♥ Where is the furthest you two have traveled together as a couple? Alaska. Honeymoon. Heaven. On. Earth.
♥ Who has the craziest exes? Can I plead the fifth? There are people we know in real life who read this blog. And they are all laughing right now. Cough. Cough. Choke.
♥ Who has the worst temper? Being that John doesn’t have one–AT ALL–and, you know, opposites attract… ahem. Let’s just say that when we let God work, He does great things. (Although it is all relative–there aren’t many true temper tantrums around here. Well, if you’re only counting the grown-ups.)
♥ Who does the cooking? Typically me. But John loves to cook and, if he’s around, is right over my shoulder trying to help, smelling the food and taste testing. And taking over if given the opportunity.
♥ Who is more social? Social Butterfly meets Mr. Epitome of Quiet.
♥ Who is the neat-freak? We’re both pretty neat, but, wait, do you see that stray shoe over there? Twitch, twitch. And, um, someone left out a cup. And, oh my word, DID YOU SERIOUSLY JUST EMPTY YOUR POCKETS ON THE TOP OF THE PIANO?? Complete convulsions begin.
♥ Who is more stubborn? I just love these questions. It’s always pleasant to think about how good both of us are at holding our ground. The truth is, there is one of us who usually, you know, LISTENS TO THE LORD and SOFTENS HIS HEART first. And it’s not me.
♥ Who hogs the bed? Hey, it’s not my fault. He was in Iraq and I got used to sleeping diagonally.
♥ Who wakes up earlier? 5:00am. Every day. He’s downstairs with his Bible and his tea. I know. The crazy guy prefers his focused time with Jesus to sleep. What’s up with THAT? (i.e., the sound of that alarm=conviction to me.)
♥ Where was your first date? A hike in nearby desert hills. In the guestbook at the top of the trail, we wrote, “John and Ash–Day One.” Everyone together now. Awww.
♥ How do you spend the holidays? With the fam. And lots and lots and LOTS of tradition.
♥ Who is more jealous? One word: ME.
♥ How long did it take to get serious? If you count the first time we met, it was two and a half years. If you’re going from when we “re-met” it was (cough and choke) about a month.
♥ Who eats more? John. Unless it’s ice cream we’re talking about.
♥ Who does/did the laundry? I do, typically, unless John remembers at the last minute that he needs work clothes washed and we’re about to head to bed and he (sweetly, kindly) sticks his own load in the washer.
♥ Who’s better with the computer? Being that he gets at least one or two phone calls a week from friends or family needing “technical support” and he, you know, keeps the Marine Corps’ computers and networks running FOR A LIVING, I’d say he is.
♥ Who drives when you are together? He’s a man. It’s his job. Except when we’re on an eighteen hour trip. I take a shift here and there, though he usually can’t sleep when I’m driving because he’s afraid I might be driving along and watching the road, and the cars, and the people in the cars, and the scenery and… oh, pretty flowers…
♥ Who is the romantic one? It depends on whatcha mean by romance. I’m the mushy one, but he’s pretty fantastic when it comes to melting my Jane Austen-raised heart.
Did you make it to the end? I heartily applaud you. Now, purty please and if you feel like it, pick the two questions that correspond with your birthday (i.e.–mine is 4/1, so I’d do question 4 and question 1) and answer them in the comments. And if you aren’t married or don’t feel like obeying my orders, go ahead and tell me to cut out the narcissism and STOP WITH THE TYPING ALREADY.
Girly says:
♥ Did you go to the same school?
Great question. My husband is 41 and I am 33. No. I went to a million different schools in Michigan and Texas. He went to a million different schools in California. Mostly in Alta Loma.
♥ Who has the worst temper?
Oh, at one time my beloved was a hot head but that was long before I met him. I'm totally the emotional one here – I'm always the one to freak out and he is always very, very calm. Always. It makes me crazy.
But he's my love and I'd not have it any other way :)
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June 10th, 2009 at 9:38 am
bessieviola says:
Oooh, fun! I actually did this one: http://bessieviola.wordpress.com/2009/02/20/in-honor-of-valentines-day-you-know-last-week-and-all/
But I want to play along here too!
1). What are your middle names? Mine is Kay, his is William. Mine has no real meaning behind it, but his belongs to his maternal grandfather, who was pretty much his hero growing up.
19). Who is more stubborn? Oh, we BOTH ARE. It's like a house of mules over here, but I like how you put it: depends on whose heart the Lord softens first! We're both working on being a little less stubborn and communicating more.
LOVE this post – you two are so cute. :)
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June 10th, 2009 at 9:48 am
Mama Bear says:
I love this post too. I found your blog, because I follow you on Twitter.
My Birthday is 8/6.
#8: Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple? I think, the fact that we have been married for five years, and have not been able to get pregnant, and we're losing time. (He's 40 and I'm turning 39.)
#6: Do you have any children together? (See previous answer) I have a biological teenage son from a previous relationship, whom my husband has wonderfully taken as his own (my son never knew bio father). We also have a 2-1/2 year old son, whom we got in May '08 through the foster care system, and adopted on March 12, '09. We are truly blessed, but would sure love to be able to have a biological baby of our own. One that is born out of love.
Angie
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June 10th, 2009 at 10:02 am
LeAnna says:
This was so fun to read! Cracked me up. We have several things in common, what with our elderly (oh hohohahahee) husbands and whirlwind relationships. (We met in late Dec, were engaged in early Feb, married in mid June, good times!)
My birthday is 7/10 –
What about pets? We have Australian Shepherds, too. How ironic. Dixie and Hank, we love the breed, they're great for herding cattle. I have a horse who is nothing but a big dog. We also have three mama cows, (which are my husbands pets) 3 baby calves, and a bull with a gimp leg. They all eat out of your hand and loooove apples. I used to consider my laying hens "pets" until they went on an egg strike.
Are you from the same hometown? Nope. I'm Okie born and raised. He was born in Texas, and grew up in Virginia, Pennsylvania, and El Paso, Texas before moving to Oklahoma.
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June 10th, 2009 at 10:41 am
Amethyst says:
see now, Ashleigh, THIS is some great blogging… sure, you ramble.. but it's hilarious! :)
unfortunately, I have no stories to add to this adorably awesome blog entry.. cuz I'm 26, still single and starting to hope for arranged marriage. LOL but I loooooved reading yours! :-D
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June 10th, 2009 at 12:09 pm
Fuzzy says:
♥ How long have you been together? Dated 3 years, married 7 years this September
♥ Who is more stubborn? LOL I knew this one would come up for me. Welll, we are both pretty stubborn, but he is very quick to soften.
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June 10th, 2009 at 1:34 pm
Joelle says:
Oh this is great. Glad you did this. SO fun to read!
4 – ♥ Who asked whom out?
Well, my hubby asked my parents if he could pursue a deeper friendship with me, and then he asked me via a really long snail-mail letter written in his neatest doctor's handwriting. :)
10 – ♥ Are you from the same hometown? Nope. He grew up in TN and I grew up in MI. And then we met in CA. How's that for a strange tale?!
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June 10th, 2009 at 2:42 pm
Sara says:
Hi Asleigh! I'm a new reader and just found you through my RSS reader. Great blog and wonderful writing style.
My Birthday is 6/30
#6: Do you have any children together: No, we haven't been blessed with any yet. But, we have a crazy, wild dog.
#30: Who is the romantic one. Similar to your answer, actually. I'm a bit more mushy/sensitive, but he's fantastic at surprisingly sweet romantic gestures.(and I love Jane Austen, I mean…who doesn't!)
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June 10th, 2009 at 3:04 pm
Megan says:
Hi Hi!! I love your little love story! I didn't like my questions, can I make up a new bday? Oh, okay
#8) Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple? Well, here's for a complete downer! Here goes… in simple terms: being unequally yoked, and his drinking (&/or my lack of tolerance for it).
#28) Who’s better with the computer? That would be me. Not that I'm good, but I spent many hours learning from my Papa whereas Kevin steered clear of anything technological up until a few years ago. So if something is broken, I *try*, but usually end up calling my Dad anyways!
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June 10th, 2009 at 5:09 pm
Emily says:
Hi! I found your Blog through YLCF. I just love your writing style! OK, my B-day is 8-19.
♥ Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple? We live 1,200 miles apart. Michigan and Texas. Yeah, we can't wait to get married.
♥ Who is more stubborn? I'm not sure. But I would guess it's me.
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June 10th, 2009 at 7:16 pm
Rebekah says:
I think I may have to do this one – maybe on Facebook, though my blog would probably like some action too. Anyways, to answer the questions …
4- Who asked whom out? Brian asked me … I'm pretty sure. My memory is pretty fuzzy. I remember inviting him to church (and he actually came and continuted to come!), but our first "official" date wasn't until several months after that.
7- What about pets? Currently we have a shepherd/lab mix named Penny who is about a year and a half old. She will be gone by the end of the week though, due to the fact that we'll be homeless for most of the summer (starting Tuesday). We've also had (over the course of our marriage) 3 puppiees, 2 cats who made 3 litters of kittens (5,6,2) and another cat.
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June 10th, 2009 at 8:23 pm
Gretchen Louise Acheson says:
(Hey, people like me with a 9/22 birthday have to do lots of counting! How 'bout numbers instead of hearts? ;) And I had to laugh as I read your answers, because I realize more each time I talk to you or read your posts how much our husbands are alike!)
Did you go to the same school?
Yes and no! We were both homeschooled all the way through, but in different homes. :) You could say we "met" through school, though, because when we spotted this family with all these (5) kids vacationing in Yellowstone the end of September, we just figured they must be homeschoolers like us. So my mom went up and asked these total strangers, "Are you homeschoolers?" And there began our happily ever after…just a few days after we'd each turned 13.
Where was your first date?
We'd grabbed lunch together many a time, though usually with siblings/family (I honestly don't remember a time it was just the two of us, actually, but I'm sure there may have been!)… But our first official date was on my 21st birthday, to a gourmet restaurant that uses local food (including produce from what is now our farm). We were married just 8 months later…but after almost 10 years of friendship.
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June 10th, 2009 at 8:25 pm
Ginger says:
First off I am so enjoying your new posts! I love reading your blog so I nearly jumped out of my skin one night when I checked your blog and saw a new post! You have now inspired me to start updating mine on a regular basis! I am telling ya I am slacking something fierce!!
I also enjoyed this post very much you had me laughing and sighing all at the same time.
And when my prince charming finds me and I am "Mrs. Prince Charming" I will be sure to answer those two questions for you! I promise!!:)
Ginger~
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June 10th, 2009 at 8:54 pm
Katie says:
Well, my birthday is 10/31, so I'll go with 10, 3 AND 1. Aren't you thrilled to get an extra answer? (they're kinda dull questions though…)
10. Nope – I grew up in a suburb of Chicago… Mark, a suburb of Detroit. Hello, Midwest.
3. We pretty much were dating immediately, being that he approached me with the intent of winning me over… although I was technically dating someone else at the time… but hey – it's been over 10 years, so who really remembers? (hides face)
1. William and Anne. We sound kinda like Ye Olde British Royalty or something.
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June 11th, 2009 at 10:58 am
April says:
You are hopeless, Ash…hopelessly in love, that is. ;-) And…that's a Very Good Thing. :-)
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June 11th, 2009 at 2:58 pm
Becky K. says:
I only have to answer one…birthday month and day are the same!
Did we go to the same school?
Nope, I went to a tiny Baptist High School and he went to a Vo-tech about three hours away.
This was Fun, Ashley.
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June 11th, 2009 at 5:01 pm
Jen says:
♥ How long have you been together? We just had our 7th wedding annversary, but we've been together now for 12 years, three months.
♥ Who’s better with the computer? Hard to say really. I'm on it more often, and I can do stuff that's I've figured out by trial and error, but he's done courses, so he can do suff that I can't. But I can type a million times better than him. (competitive relaionship much?)
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June 11th, 2009 at 6:24 pm
Jen says:
and of course, there's a typo… *sigh* *grin*
relaTionship.
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June 11th, 2009 at 6:24 pm
Shari says:
♥ Who asked whom out? He asked me!
♥ Who does the cooking? I do the cooking, but admittedly, it's not my favorite thing to do!
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June 11th, 2009 at 7:12 pm
Hannah C. says:
This post made me smile so much!!
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June 11th, 2009 at 7:13 pm
Hannah C. says:
Aaand I accidentally pushed the wrong button without commenting more. Here's the rest of it. Whoops.
My birthday is 5/18, though I'm not married yet, just engaged.
♥ How old are each of you? I'm twenty. He's..eight months younger than me..I feel more like a crazy person every time I think about that. Oh well.
♥ Who is the neat-freak? I'm not a neat freak. But his room is a disaster at best..so that would make me the neat one!
I think driving is a man's job too! ;) (The fact that I don't actually drive yet has nothing to do with this whatsoever, of course.)
[Reply]
June 11th, 2009 at 7:15 pm
kathy says:
♥ What are your middle names? John and Marie!
♥ Did you go to the same school? We were in the same dorm freshman year!
[Reply]
June 12th, 2009 at 10:21 am
Arlene says:
Hmmm… I did this on FB, but who knows if you actually read that stuff, LOL, so I'll do these again just for you ;o) (not that I think you really care if I answer these, lol… now who's the narcissistic one???) So. Moving on…
#3 How long did you know each other before you started dating?
Well, he started attending our church in Feb 2004, so technically it was a year. But, it was, like, June before we ever even had an actual conversation, so, really we knew each other about 6~7 months before he "officially" asked to court me 17Feb2005. :o)
#24 How long did it take to get serious?
The short answer: we started courting in Feb, and were married 26May2005.
The long answer (I give a lot of these): it was pretty serious from the get-go.
When he asked me if it would be okay if he talked to my parents about starting a courtship, I pretty much told him not to talk to them if he "didn't see it going anywhere" (I did a lot of stuttering and mumbling trying to get that out because I didn't want to scare him away with talk of marriage already, LOL). But, he nodded and said, "Of course," and that he wouldn't talk with them if he hadn't been thinking the exact same thing.
[Reply]
June 12th, 2009 at 6:28 pm
Miranda says:
This is so fun! Okay, my birthday is 5/8 (had to think about it to get the date the right way round – Brit here…), so:
5. How old are each of you? I was 24 last month, he will be 30 in September. (And not even slightly sensitive about it…)
8. Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple? Probably when my stepfather died and I was away taking care of my mother and sisters for weeks. It was the first time we'd been apart for that long.
I think I'm going to have to do the whole thing now!
[Reply]
June 15th, 2009 at 7:43 am
Anonymous says:
I'm 17 and not married (of course……or maybe not quite so "of course"). But this was fun to read anyway. :)
~Allie in KY~
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June 16th, 2009 at 10:01 am
Brittney says:
Oh! Fun, fun! :)
♥ Do you have any children together? Aww… yes. Three little darlings in heaven, and I am sure they have their daddy's blue eyes and the darling curly blonde hair that he had as a kid.
♥ Who has the worst temper? Hmm, that's a good question. Both my husband and I have yet to downright blow up in our marriage. Our frustrations have been involved with external circumstances and never with each other. So I don't know…. yet. :)
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June 22nd, 2009 at 1:32 pm
Miss Sara says:
Okay, so I'm not married but the questions that were my bday could go with sisters too right? Right? Oh skip it and I'll do it anyways.
♥ Who is the smartest? Megs. Oh my, she is so smart. Even though I. Skipped. 2. Grades. in high school (cough cough-HINT-cough cough)
♥How old are each of you? She is 16 and I'm 13… she was the oldest and enjoying life as an only w/ my parents and then I came and shattered her illusion. HE HE HE
[Reply]
July 12th, 2009 at 10:42 am
kevswifey says:
ok by the way just in case you didn't know this is Becky.
ok so mine was….
12- who is more sensitive? Me without any doubt at all!!!
and…
29- Who's better with the computer?
Him no question I can get on the internet and type that is about as far as my knowledge goes! haha
[Reply]
August 8th, 2009 at 7:20 pm
Heart & Home » Six Years Ago… says:
[...] here’s a bit of proof of our crazy, our crazy reality, and our crazy real [...]
June 26th, 2010 at 9:15 am
Natalie J. Vandenberghe says:
I had fun reading this post. Congratulations! May you have many more blessed years together.
1. My middle name is Jean.
My mother, grandmother, sister, and daughter all have the beautiful middle name of MARIE. When I was younger, I thought I would name my first-born son DAVID JOHN (my favorite name)
19. Who is more stubborn? hmm, I think I got this question for a reason! I confess…
[Reply]
June 27th, 2010 at 1:08 pm