Since The Day I Met You....

About two years ago Jason and I met...well, wait let me back up.  Many of you probably don't know the "story of us" so I'll start from the beginning.  

At the end of first semester, my sophomore year (2009) I'd received a Facebook friend request from a Mr. "Jason O'Polka" whom I'd never seen or heard of in my life.  (..later I found out he was only adding me on Facebook because he thought I was a girl he'd met through a friend)  Despite this lack of familiarity and a pending friend request, he'd decided to start sending me Facebook messages (as if that wasn't going to creep me out even more).  To him I was a "cute stranger" worth pursuing and to me..he was an "old man" trying to get only one thing.  We joke about this now obviously, but at the time I was 19 and he was a newly aged 23.  While age seemed petty, it was a big deal for this sophomore declaring her sociology major and adjusting to college 200 miles away from home.  

Eventually, after bantering via Facebook messaging, I accepted his friend request and stalked his pictures and information trying to figure out why in the world this guy wanted to talk to me.  What was the catch?  I was a sophomore in college and he was a full time employee living in the real world.  Eventually, I gave in to this curiosity and met up with Jason to play a little soccer.  (By the way...I'd never played soccer in my life--so this was an experience in and of itself)  Unfortunately, our soccer "date" was short lived because of some rain.  He kindly dropped me off back at my dorm and went on his way, only for me to find a message later that evening in my Facebook inbox informing me that he deserved a "rain check" date.  [several days passed before I responded to his message..this happened frequently in the beginning because I hadn't a clue what I was getting myself into]

Since I left the last "date" with shin splints and what felt like a few broken toes (because I clearly had no clue how to kick a soccer ball), a low key night on the couch sounded appropriate. Unsure of how I felt about our interactions the evening before, I reluctantly offered a dinner/movie date idea.  He enthusiastically accepted and as usual offered to come pick me up.  I declined.  It was my first time visiting his apartment and I felt a bit out of place so I figured if I drove myself I could escape quickly if things got awkward.  But they didn't, to my surprise we just talked.  Never actually watching the movie we were supposed to.  We talked for hours about the most random things; school, jobs, religion, girls, guys, food, friends.  Anything and everything you could think of, we talked about.   It was weird, but weird in a good way.  A way I couldn't describe, I don't think I can even describe it now.  When I got back to my dorm that night, my roommate at the time, Hannah Ney, asked me where I was all evening.  I told her about Jason and the crazy random talk we'd just had.  She seemed a little weirded out that I was hanging out with someone so much older but was happy that I was happy.  [several more days and months had passed along with a trip to Florida and a few bruised bones resulting in the wearing of a boot]

During that time period, I'd gotten a little freaked out about how close Jason and I had become.  While it was a satisfying feeling to feel so close to someone in such a short amount of time, I was still not comfortable with the age difference and had gotten word that he was talking to other people on the side.  With this information in mind, I made the decision to cease contact with Jason.  In the meantime, I'd met someone while down in Florida and began a long distance relationship while Jason had began a relationship of his own as well.  Naturally, the long distance thing didn't work out and I was left with Jason still on my mind.  Finally in the summer of 2009 I got texting.  Jason was always frustrated he couldn't text me so in June while laying out on the back porch, I texted him.  Below is the last Facebook message he sent me before we started texting thousands of times a month!  Then that whole Facebook thing was out the window, that just wasn't good enough anymore.  

Jason O'Polka June 10, 2009 at 4:44pm Report

well hello miss hannah. i was thinking about you today so i thought id drop a line. havent really chatted much recently. just wondering whats new with you.

The rest is history really.  Shortly after leaving relationships that we never should have started, Jason began making early morning trips to Galesburg just to see me.  Even if it was for only 2-3 hours it was better than nothing.  At the time, I was working a third shift CNA job and he would meet me after work across the street at Walmart.  Since most of my family was sleeping and I didn't want to wake them, we'd spend our time catching up walking through the isles of Super Walmart.  Soon my mom caught on and would text me at 7am telling me to bring him home because we didn't need to browse the store anymore.  My mom still likes to drop jokes today about "hanging out at Walmart."  [laughs]  Guess we were just young and in love, doing anything and everything possible to see each other.  

Now, well...we're getting married! :)  Here are a few pictures of the journey we've made since 2009.

The first time I met his family (Feb. 09)

Our first camping trip 

One of many times we spent playing games and visiting with his family in the summer time.

Picking out our first pumpkins together

Visiting my family in Chicago for Christmas 09

Celebrating Easter with his newlywed grandparents in Oskaloosa

Meeting my friends at block party (May 2010).

Celebrating summer weddings (June 2010)

Seeing Jason in a tux for the first time, as well as catching Jess Thomas' bouquet.  

My first Iowa State Fair experience (2010)

Meeting Jason's nephew...it has been a blessing and an honor to have been a part of his sister's pregnancy and now Hendrix's early childhood. 

We got engaged (Oct. 21, 2010)

I spent my first Christmas away from home with my new family--the O'Polkas (Dec. 2010)

And now...in 4 months I'll graduate, in 5 months I'll have my first job after college, and in 6 months I'll be married to the man I met randomly on Facebook.  Funny how things work out huh?!  But there's one thing I do know...Since the day I met [you] I knew I was irrevocably in love.  The type of love that transcends all circumstances.  The type of love that can't be explained, and the type of love that just plain doesn't make sense sometimes.  But that's what makes us, us in this life I call chaos.