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Wednesday, June 13, 2012

The Story of How we met

Us at lunch at Morel's New Roads, LA on my trip to Louisiana

The story of how Jesse and I met is a little different from most, but this is what happens when you live 10, 000 miles away - we like to do things a little differently. You see, once upon a time before facebook was known, there was a thing called myspace. Jesse and I had a mutual friend at the time and I decided he was cute and I was going to add him. 
I started talking to Jesse a week before his 18th birthday and I was only 15 at the time (game, I know). As soon as we started talking we hit it off and were on AIM to one another as much as possible. The first time Jesse called me we spoke for six hours, oblivious to how much that phone call would actually cost. 

 15/16 year old Kristy - poor Jesse must've thought he was falling for an oompa loompa.

I'm still amazed that Jesse fell for me, despite my lovely myspace name - I'm ashamed to admit it, but my fifteen year old self went by "KristyHEIRESS". That name now makes me cringe.

We kept on talking and running up massive phone bills thanks to long distance texting/calling and Jesse started saving to come to Australia so we could meet in person for the first time. During this time, my friends and family were very skeptical. My parent's feared that their little girl was going to have her heart broken and my friends thought I was totally bonkers, friends of my parents had told them to cut the internet off or take my phone away from me.

Thankfully my parents trusted that I was mature enough to make my own decisions and understood that no matter what they did, I was still going to talk to Jesse. They also made the extremely smart decision to buy me a hiptop/sidekick with unlimited internet and IM to save on the phone bills and Jesse did the same. 

 Us on Jesse's first trip here
In April 2009 - Just after Jesse's 19th birthday and a year after we started talking, he caught three consecutive flights from Alexandria, LA to Sydney, Australia. It was the first time Jesse had ever been on a plane or left the country - I was beyond nervous that he was going to hate flying and want to turn around and go home. 

He arrived in Sydney and we spent 15 days together - I fell even more in love with him and he became a part of my family. My family and friends then realised I wasn't completely bonkers and Jesse really did love me. He left and we were both heart broken, but knew that wouldn't be the last time we'd see one another. 

We kept on iming, emailing, calling and Jesse kept on saving to come back. I was finishing my HSC so I wasn't able to travel to Louisiana, so we waited until Jesse was able to come back. The distance seemed even further now that we'd been together, but we stuck it out for 2 1/2 years until Jesse finally made his way back. 

One of my christmas presents to Jesse. 

Jesse finally returned "home" in December, 2011 to spend Christmas and New Years with my family and I. Before he arrived, my sister had been critically ill in hospital (I'll tell you more about her in another post) and he helped me through every second of it. My parent's could've easily told Jesse to delay his trip after all he'd been through, but since he was already so much a part of our family, him coming became the hope that we all clung to. Katrina even set goals for herself to get out off the oxygen, out of the wheelchair and out of hospital before Jesse arrived. She got out of hospital the day after Jesse arrived, only because she was still considered "toxic" from her chemo treatment.
Us on Christmas day - yes, that's a Minnie Apron. I'm the world's biggest Disney fan.

People ask me what I mean when I say Jesse is a part of my family. My sister calls him her brother, my parent's cried when he left, when my Pa was alive he adored Jesse (and he was the world's hardest person to please) - and while I'm writing this, I'm tearing up at how lucky I am. My parent's love him, my sister loves him and all of my extended family and friends that have met him love him too. I am the luckiest girl in the world to be engaged to someone who my family loves too and I am thankful for that every single day. 

Katrina, Jesse and I on Christmas day and Katrina
and Jesse demolishing our Gingerbread Houses on Christmas Night
While Jesse was here, we went looking for engagement rings. For quite a while we had been talking about getting married, but in the months before he arrived we started talking about it as something that was going to happen - not just a dream. Unfortunately because it was Christmas time, "the ring" was no where to be found. But next week, I'll tell you how we found it!
 Us on our mini-vacation-in-a-vacation at Rose Bay

We also made plans that once Katrina had finished her monthly chemotherapy treatments, my Mum and I would come to Louisiana to meet his family and get to know what Louisiana is like.
 Us at Bennett Bay Landing, Forest Hill LA

So on May 14th 2012, my beautiful Mum and I travelled all the way to Louisiana via Dallas to meet Jesse's family for the first time. I was nervous they wouldn't like me and so was Mum, but we hit it off immediately. I had the best two weeks in a long, long time and I left feeling like I had an entirely new branch to my family tree. 

 Us with tiny baby kittens in Mississippi
We drove for hours across Louisiana, found "the ring", visited his Nanny in Mississippi, looked at a wedding dress in Lafayette (well I did!), went to the Zoo and so much more and I got to meet his family and his four gorgeous little nieces. To say I didn't want to leave was an understatement, I now want to win the lottery so Jesse and I can travel between our two families for the rest of our life (and subsequently avoid winter :P).

 Instagram pics we sent to friends and family, telling them we were engaged.

 Am I too young to get married? No, I honestly don't believe that I am - yet I know some people are bound to criticize me. For the past four and a half years, I have been in love with someone who has become my best friend. He loves me just as much as I love him, supports me through everything, makes me feel beautiful and knows exactly when to tell me to shut up. I can not wait to spend my life with him, grow old with him and eventually raise a family with him - I also can't wait to become more of a part of his family.
The day Jesse's visa gets accepted and I know he's moving here, there will not be a thing in the world that could take the happiness out of my heart. I'm getting to marry the love of my life and nothing is going to change that! 

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Well, that was quite extensive - thank you if you made it through all of it! But now I want you to share with me, how did you meet your significant other?
It makes me laugh to think that our future children won't even know what myspace is!
Also, if you have any questions - please ask away! :) If I get enough, I'd love to do a Q&A post - regardless of what your question is about!

    
   
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45 comments:

  1. This, my young friend, is beautiful! And shows how mature you both are, and how much you believe in each other and what you have. I can definitely say I wouldn't have been prepared to travel halfway around the world to see someone for the first time...but, oh, the anticipation!

    Congratulations again =)

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    1. Thank you Rita, honestly, your comment means so much! We both took a giant leap of faith, but thankfully it paid off well and truly! :)

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  2. Wow! Thank you lovely! I knew it was going to be romantic but it was about 68000 times more moving than I had anticipated. LIKE I'm going to tell you about the pedestrian way I met my bloke after that ;) Bless you both, how lucky you were to find each other and have the rest of your lives to spend together. It's great to hear that SOMETHING good came out of Myspace :)

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    1. How did you find your bloke?!
      Haha, I've never put it that way but you make a good point - something good did come out of myspace :P

      Delete
  3. This is such an adorable story! So happy you commented on my blog and I found yours!!!

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  4. I still remember the early days when you would come to school and tell me all about him. I can't even tell you how happy I am that you and Jesse found each other.

    Love Alex xx

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    1. Thank you, Alex - it means so much to me! :)
      I hope I didn't bug you all too much talking about him, haha!

      Delete
  5. Hi Kristy!
    Thanks for dropping by my blog. The moment I saw you were my age and about to get married blew my mind away. You KNOW I had to come read the "how we met" story! It was wonderful and I enjoyed reading every single word. It's an unbelievable story, and you guys are really lucky. I definitely can't wait to continue reading about your experiences! I wish you both the best of luck :)

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    1. Thank you for reading, Paola! I can't wait to share more with you! :)

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  6. Kristy, our 'how we met' story is very similar, expect we're a decade older, lol.

    I met my husband on a Radiohead message board in 1999. He lived in North Carolina, I'm here in Sydney. Hours and hours on the phone every day (don't know how we managed that, I was at college and he worked!), packages back and forth, emails big and small. He managed to save up and flew over here so we could meet in person.. the rest is history! Married in 2004 (I was 22), 2 kids later - we've settled in Sydney and he/we make the trips back to the States whenever we can.

    When you know, you just know! :) Will be following your blog from now on x

    p.s. the visa process SUCKED, it took about 18 months to process..... :|

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Oh wow, that's awesome! I'm glad you and your hubby are enjoying your life together in the same country - I SO can't wait for that.

      I'm hoping our visa will be processed much much faster than that... but who knows :(

      Welcome to my crazy Southern In Law world :P

      Delete
  7. I stumbled across your blog by googling quinoa recipes and I am so glad I did.

    It makes my heart smile to read your story and I wish you both all the best from the bottom of my heart!!!

    Kussy xo

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Oh thank you, Kussy! You are so sweet :)

      I hope you found the quinoa recipe you were looking for! Make sure you follow Southern In-Law (either via RSS, email or Social Media) as I'm about to post a delicious Baked Quinoa recipe in the next couple of days!

      Thanks for taking the time to write a comment!

      Delete
  8. awwwwwwwwwww! So so sweet! Josh sat in front of me in one of my classes in college ;) nerdy ;)

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Oh that is so cute, haha! Whenever we tell people we met on Myspace they either say "HUH?!" or "Oh my gosh, that was so long ago!" - our kids won't even know what myspace is ;P

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  9. What a beautiful love story :) I got a little teary reading it an understood a lot of what you went through!
    My partner and I met online (World of Warcraft I hate to admit) and had a long distance relationship on and off for 7 years before I took the plunge and moved from Sydney to Melbourne. My parents were concerned, but they absolutely love Kam and we're so happy together. I can't wait to hear more of your story over time :)

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    1. Thank you, Ally! How sweet, another long distance success story! Lucky Melbourne isn't too far from home so you can always visit! :)

      Delete
  10. Great blog here! Additionally your site loads up very fast!

    What web host are you the usage of? Can I get your affiliate
    link on your host? I desire my site loaded up as quickly as yours lol

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    ReplyDelete
  11. This story is so touching. Love is such a powerful thing. I don't believe you are too young to get married. The bond you two share and the adversities you have concurred over the past 5 years speaks for itself. I love your blog and can't wait to watch as your love story continues and the wedding day comes!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I enjoyed reading your "how we met" story. I met my husband when I was 11 and he was 12 on the first day of school in the 7th grade. We started dating when I was 16 and he was 17. We were married 3 weeks after high school graduation when I was 17 and he was 18, and no I was not pregnant. lol We have been married 41 years this month. I don't think you are too young to get married if you are truly in love.

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    1. Why thank you! How sweet that you met your husband so young!

      Congratulations to you for 41 years of marriage! It's so refreshing to hear a story like this :)

      Delete
  13. I loved reading your "How we met" story! As soon as I finished, I turned to my husband, summed it up, and exclaimed "It's just like us!". Sorta.

    My hubby and I met through a freak accident online. We were both instant messaging other people and received a random message that sounded like it was from the middle of a conversation. It seems our messages somehow were sent to each other instead of to our friends. Some pestering on his part and months later we were talking all day, every day. He had recently enlisted and was stationed in Hawaii, so after "knowing" each other for just short of a year, he flew me out to meet him for the first time. That first weekend together, we knew we were in love. The next time he flew me out, he proposed. We were married within a year and next month will be our 2 year wedding anniversary (3 years together total). I am the happiest I have ever been and fall more in love with him every day.

    Thank you for sharing your story, it brought a huge smile to my face and I wish you absolute happiness. You deserve it. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh wow, Courtney! Well they definitely do say, if something is meant to happen - it will happen - and you would certainly know this!

      What an incredible story - and what a very lucky accident! Isn't it funny how little things can change our whole lives? I always say to Jesse that I'm so glad I decided to "friend request" him - because I have no idea where I'd be otherwise!

      I wish you absolute happiness as well - and it sounds like you have just that! :)

      Delete
  14. This is such a wonderful story! It almost made me cry :) I wish you two all the best for the future! Greetings from Germany :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Hi Kristy! Loved reading your story. So glad you posted it, as when I started snooping around your blog one of my immediate thoughts was "I wonder how they met" :) My husband and I have a similar story... we met through mutual friends on the internet in 2009 via video gaming, finally met in person in 2012 and got married 3 months later! I am Canadian, he is from California and he moved here to be with me, too!
    Best of luck to you two in the future, and as a fellow food blogger, I must say your site is fantastic!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey Ashley,
      Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a comment! I'm so glad to hear of another long distance success story!

      I am so glad you like the blog - it's comments like this that totally make my day! <3

      Delete
  16. Hi Kristy..I love your story. My husband and I (I'm Australian) became pen pals (waaay before facebook, internet etc.) We wrote to each other (yes, actual letters!)for about 2 years and then he came out here for a holiday and we too became engaged while he was here. He arrived here in December and we got engaged on Valentine's Day 2 months later! He is from California. He went back to the U.S. and then I sponsored him over...a nervous wait I can tell you. I want to wish you both every happiness together and to welcome Jesse to Australia! By the way this year we celebrate our 27th wedding anniversary!! Joy. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so very much for taking the time to leave a comment, Joy! What a romantic story!

      How did you find your husband as a penpal originally? Did you have mutual friends?

      Congratulations on your 27 years! Amazing! Xx

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  17. Wow what a lovely story to share! I am a Canadian who by chance fell in love with an Icelandic traveler. We traveled together for a while but then he had to go back home. It was hard keeping touch for months while we lived oceans apart (I can't imagine how you handled it for 2 1/2 years!!), but he has now moved to my country to study and to live with me after I visited his country for a few months. I couldn't be happier! I am looking forward to trying out some of your fabulous-sounding recipes. Keep blogging and be happy! =)

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Now that sounds like an interesting story! We actually spent 5 1/2 years living in different countries!

      You'll have to let me know what you think of the recipes if you make any!

      Delete
  18. What an amazing story! I'm not sure how I ended up on your blog...clicking consecutive links and suddenly I was here and couldn't wait to read your story because I too was in a long distance relationship with an American guy. We stuck out the long distance for 2 years and last year he finally graduated college and was able to come live with me in Sydney. It's been a roller-coaster 4 years all up and people need to hear stories like ours to know that despite what the cynics say, long distance works and I believe can make relationships even stronger ;) Congrats to you two and I hope you have a lovely wedding!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey Melissa,
      Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment! Long distance relationships can definitely work - you just have to have a lot more courage, commitment and strength than the average relationship. I totally agree with you - it does make relationships even stronger.

      Wishing you and your partner all the best! <3

      Delete
  19. Long distance relationships are never easy. I've been there myself. I'm really glad yours worked out! :) Wish you all the best!

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    1. They are definitely not easy, Grace! I'm so thankful ours worked out too :) xx

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  20. Hey Kristy,

    It's nice to read your story, there aren't many people I know that have a story so similar to mine.

    I'm also 21 and I married my best friend almost one full year ago. We met at a summer camp when we were kids and continued going there and becoming much better friends for many years. Once we were a bit older we became much closer and eventually started chatting all day and night (luckily we had Skype and unlimited texting) until I finally moved to his city a year and half later, and one year after that we were married :) When it's right, you just know.

    Also, I just came across your blog and I love it!
    All the Best

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey Amanda,
      Thanks for stopping by the blog - I'm so glad you love it! You are right - you know when you've found the one, regardless of the circumstances! xx

      Delete
  21. Hi Kristy... just stumbled across your blog!

    I also met my husband of almost 9 years on Myspace! All these years, living in US and Oz and 2 children later we are happier than ever. It's not an easy road, but well worth it! xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi there,
      What a small world! Glad to hear that you and your hubby have another successful online relationship love story! xx

      Delete
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  23. This is such a beautiful and heartwarming story! It's amazing how love can transcend distance and bring people together. Wishing you both a lifetime of happiness and love.

    ReplyDelete

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