it was only two months

It was January of 1999. I was sitting in the Orlando airport waiting for the family who I was to be nannying for while on their Disney vacation, to arrive (a few hours after I had arrived). I had already decided that taking the city bus around Orlando was not necessarily what I should be doing as a tourist that day. After a few young gentlemen yelled some very unkind words at me while walking by myself in a part of the city that wasn't so nice, I made my way back to the airport to sit and wait for a few hours in safety. While in the airport I picked up a book at a little shop there, entitled, "I Kissed Dating Goodbye." I bought it immediately. Now why I would buy this book is a little beyond me as I look back because I really hadn't dated all that much prior to this. Like pretty much only a tiny bit. But nonetheless I was boy crazy at this point in my life and decided I needed to get a handle on it and start really putting God first.

I read the entire book while I was nannying at Disney after the kids would go to bed and on my plane ride home the next week. The idea was definitely for me. Putting God first in your life, and persons of the opposite sex on the back burner. This way, God could continue to be number one until I was actually ready to open my eyes the way He wanted me to in hopes that I could see clearly who He wanted me to be with for the rest of my life. The idea was to not date, but be friends with guys first, prior to getting involved in a relationship in hopes of finding a potential spouse without having to go through the rigmaroles, ups, downs, and loopdeloops of emotions that many relationships can take a person through.

So by the end of January 1999, I was resigned to no dating for an indefinite time. I was excited to see what God was going to do in my life over the next long while (which, at the time, is what I was expecting and looking forward to). I knew that God had big plans for Him and I to be together without boys being on my mind.

That supposed "long while" wasn't so long after all.

Fast forward about two months. The day was April 10, 1999. I met the boy (my affectionate name for Jeremiah) while hanging out with my bff, Mandy.

Fast forward 2 1/2 years. The day was November 2, 2002. I married the boy in front of our family and closest friends.

Fast forward 2 more years. The day was November 14, 2004. I made the boy a dad as Jonah James Kruger came into the world at a whopping 5 lbs 4 oz!

Fast forward 6 1/2 years. The day is June 19, 2011. The day is Father's Day. The boy is Daddy to our three beautiful lovies. The boy is amazing as he fathers our children. The boy is devoted to raising his children to love Jesus and to love others. The boy looks into the eyes of his offspring and tells them he loves them. The boy grabs a hold of his children and draws them close when their knees are scraped, toes are stubbed, fingers are cut, heads are bonked, feelings are hurt, or hearts are broken. The boy raises his sons to be respectful and loving towards girls, so that they will love and cherish the future wives they will have. The boy raises his daughter in security so that she will be secure in her relationship with the future husband that she will have. The boy loves his children's mommy and holds her close so that they can see their love and know that all is well in their family. The boy... is a father. A father who makes it easy to picture God as Father.

On this Father's Day, I celebrate the boy whom God chose to be the father of my children.

God knows what He is doing. He knows that I don't like to wait long for most things. I told Jesus that He'd be my number one guy while I waited for Him to show me who would be my guy. He only made me wait 2 months.

Happy Father's Day Jeremiah John. You are an incredible Dad.