Three years ago.

Three years ago, before we started this, we were something entirely different. We were just us. Alisha and Drew, Andrew and Alley, (depending on how you knew us), we were anticipating a future together, having no idea what was in store.



When I first met Drew I was convinced he wasn't the "one". Not because he demonstrated in any way that he wasn't, just because I was done dating. I had been on a handful of ridiculous dates and had temporarily pleaded dating insanity. So when we agreed to meet to take a walk around Lake Calhoun I was expecting a nice afternoon. Nothing more. This mind you, was after he had already stood me up by calling to cancel at the last minute, so he already had a strike against him.

That day was full of interesting conversation. Drew, originally, wasn't so sure about kids, and once our conversation got rolling I asked him, point blank, what the deal was. I was so jaded about the dating scene I didn't even want to continue to talk to someone who couldn't appreciate kids. So I told him that. I might have just walked right away from him and left him to continue to walk around Lake Calhoun as the one single guy among dozens of happy couples. But, it wasn't that he didn't want kids. As it turns out, he was afraid of them. He knew very little about them other than "they scream in restaurants" and "pick their noses" and have "tantrums in public". After a half hour or so of explaining how kids get that way and all of the happiness to be found in children, he smiled a "maybe it wouldn't been so rough" smile. I decided I liked his openness.

After our walk we wandered back toward his house, where he told me that he was happy that I made it evident that I wasn't interested in him because otherwise he would never show me is uber-messy apartment (complete with giant Red-Tail Boa Constrictor). So he invited me in to the apartment. Turns out he believed me when I said I had no interest.
It was messy, but it wasn't awful, and the conversation was at least engaging. Engaging so much that suddenly it was 1:00 am. We had just sat there talking for a ridiculous amount of time not without second thought.

Hmm.. there could be some promise here.

When I finally went home and stepped back in to Grad school life, I wasn't surprised to hear from him a day or so later. Turns out Drew wanted to go on a real date, and, no surprises here, so did I. So we dated, briefly, before quickly realizing that this was bigger than dating. We connected in lots of ways, but mostly we fit into each other's lives and ideals seamlessly. Drew was willing to sit for long standardized assessments (which is no easy task) while I practiced by school psych skills, and I was willing to hear all too much about cycling and grass.

Before long we weren't spending much time apart, and I at least knew that he was a big part of the rest of my life. And so, the rest of our story began, Drew bought a house, and we moved into it. We waited a bit to get engaged (on May 21st, which also happens to be Collin's birthday, serendipitously) because we didn't want folks to think we were a little bit crazy, and then, almost three years after meeting each other this happened:



























And then we enjoyed some time here





















With these crazy cats-














Before ending our night with a little of this























and a little of this.













I still think it was one of the very best days of my life. I still look back at it with complete and utter happiness. I still remember the fantastic feeling of beginning the rest of our lives together and I still live those feelings every day.

I love you, Drew, more than you'll likely ever know.
Happy third Anniversary.