So, I'm behind on my blogging. Thankfully, that's all I'm behind on, or so I feel right now. Christmas cards will go out tomorrow - they are already stamped, ready, and waiting go, my baking list and shopping list is made out, waiting for me to get started on all that this Thursday and Friday, and I plan to spend all of Saturday afternoon wrapping presents so the ones that need to be mailed can be mailed early the week of Christmas. Now if everything will just go according to my plans. We'll see. I have several things I intend to catch my blog up on, but I will do that sometime next week.
However - there is something I want to take the time to do now while I have the chance. David and I will celebrate our four year anniversary on Thursday (geez, has it only been four years?!!?) My friend, Jessica, did this post about her husband awhile back and I decided when I read it that I was going to do this for David for our anniversary. We decided not to exchange gifts for our anniversary this year, we'll just take each other to dinner, so I consider this my gift to him. I love you, David, and I am so glad to be your wife!
Name: David Oliver Ennis
How long did you date before you were married? Six little months. I was good friends with David's Aunt Dena while I was in college, two of his cousins lived next door to me in college, and he had other cousins in Tuscaloosa I was friends with, so I knew who David was, but since I'm two years older than he is, when he was a freshman at Mississippi State Univ, I was a junior at UA and I was
way too old for him. He was gearing up to serve a two-year mission for our church, so though I always thought he was cute, I never really paid him that much attention. Isn't that sad? In 2004, I was living in Boston teaching high school and decided to move home to Alabama, though I had no idea why, because I loved my life in Boston. On my long drive from Boston back to Bama, I stopped in Georgia to be a counselor at one of church's summer youth camps. David was also there as a counselor, home from his two year mission to Brazil, and suddenly was no longer "cute little David Ennis", but rather, "Wow, David Ennis, when did you grow up?" I was beginning to figure out, even then, why I moved myself back to Alabama. I knew long before he did that I was going to marry him. But it was important to me that he come to that conclusion all on his own. So, I just sat back and waited for him to figure it out too. Thankfully, he did. We began casualing dating in June, seriously dating in August, engaged in September, married in December, and Ethan came along nine short months later. I feel like I got my fairytale.
How long have you been married? Four years.
What does he do that surprises you? Sometimes I'll come home from the grocery store and he'll be folding the piles of clean laundry that seem to accumulate on our couch some weeks. I'd like to think he's doing it to be nice rather than because he needs a place to sit down! He's also known to clean the kitchen on occasion even without being asked. I try to relieve him of as many of the duties of the house as possible since he's the one in school and I'm the one staying at home, but I so appreciate when I come home from errands to a clean kitchen or folded laundry. He's very thoughtful like that.
What is your favorite feature of his? This is hard to describe, but I love it how when I'm looking at his profile and he smiles. He has a great smile anyway, but there is something about that particular angle so that when he smiles, he looks soooo handsome. Of course I think he's handsome all the time, but that side smile...love it. I also love that he has long legs and pray, pray, pray Sara Katherine gets his long legs genes instead of my long torso genes. It will save her many years of angst trying to find blue jeans that will fit her thighs without falling off her waist.
What is your favorite quality of his? Hands down, even more than how good of a husband he is, that he is a good father. He teaches me so much about the art of playing and interacting with our children, about dropping what you're doing sometimes, even if it's important, to take time out to play a game of Candyland or pull your kids up in your lap and read a book. About letting them help you do things like bake a cake or fix a broken chair, even if it slows you down or complicates what you're trying do. He would rather play with them in the yard or on the floor than do anything else. He is patient with them, kind to them, and I can count on one hand the number of times I have heard him really raise his voice to reprimand them, which is more than I can say for myself. He is as perfect a father as I could ask for, and teaches me much about how to be a parent.
Does he have a nickname for you? Jeni-Mae
What is his favorite color? Crimson, of course.
What is his favorite food? The only thing David doesn't really like is hard-boiled eggs. And he'll even eat those if you chop them up in something. His mom would never let any of her kids say they "didn't like" something, rather they had to say, "it's not my favorite." So he has lots of things that "aren't his favorite", but he will eat just about anything. Seriously, anything. He's told me the favorite thing of mine that I make are Chinese Pork Chops and Fried Rice, which is a recipe I got from Mama Ford in collge. Ummm, ummm!
What is his favorite sport? College football. Period. Alabama and SEC football to be exact.
When and where was your first kiss? My little apartment in Columbiana where I was teaching high school the year we dated and got married. It had a deck and a pretty view of the sky. It was way out in the country, so the stars were really bright. We had just come back from eating Mexican food. Good thing we had both eaten it! I had been waiting for WEEKS for him to kiss me, but for whatever his reasons were, he took his sweet time. It was the perfect first kiss. Definitely worth the wait.
Favorite thing to do as a couple? I love it when he goes to the gym with me, which isn't often since he works out with ROTC several times a week. We love to watch movies together, and he even likes to shop with me, which I think is
awesome. We really just like to be around each other a lot, so whatever we happen to be doing if it's dishes, yardwork, or something more fun, we just like to do it together.
Do you have any children? A precious little boy and a beautiful little girl. We cannot imagine our life without them.
Does he have a hidden talent? He is actually a really great artist. It surprises me sometimes. When we need to settle Ethan or Sara Katherine down during church, he'll start sketching the bulletin while the kids watch, and I'm always surprised how good the drawings are! He also has a really nice singing voice. He started practicing with our church choir, but hasn't done that in a few weeks. One of the things I've liked about him from the very start is that he sings the hymns at church, and loud where people can hear him! Signing is a form of worship, and it bugs me when guys (and girls!) don't even make an effort to at least say the words of the hymns. Not David! If you're sitting around him, you'll hear him!
How old is he? A husband and father of two at the ripe old age of 26. Some of my family told me they were worried when we got married because he was so young (he was 22). They worried that because he was so young he'd wake up one day and wished he had time to experience more that the world has to offer. One of my aunts told me recently now that they've had time to get to know him and have come to love him that they see he truly is happy with the decision he made, and they're not worried anymore. David was ready to move on with his life, and will tell anybody that asks that he doesn't feel like he missed out on a thing, but rather gained what he always wanted: a family of his own. I'm incredibly blessed he felt that way. I don't even like to think what my life would be like if he would have felt differently.
Who said I love you first? He did. On the phone. And I thought he was kidding. I was
speechless when he told me he was serious, and I don't even think I told him I loved him back that night even though I totally did!
What is his favorite type of music? He loves old school country, like George Strait. Creedence Clearwater Revival is another one of his favorites. He was never huge into music, so I've been able to introduce him to some of my favorites that he's taken too pretty well. He even took me to see Billy Joel the week before Sara Katherine was born. I don't know if he likes Billy Joel or not, but he pretends too, and I love him for that. :)
What do you admire most about him? He goes confidently in the decisions he makes for his life. Once he receives inspiration that what he's doing is right, there is no looking back. It has made our big life changes, like law school, and his decision to join the military much easier knowing he is
absolutely certain about these things, or he would not be pursuing them. And I admire that he is smart and intelligent, and really a lot of it is just one of his gifts. He doesn't have to work really hard at school and still manages to do extremely well. I hope all the smartness rubs off on our kids. My plan is to raise smart athletes, then college will pay for itself!
Do you think he will read this? Oh yes. He tells me he's glad I blog and keep a family journal. I download all of our posts into a scrapbook at blurb.com and then they print it and bind it into a book, so all this time spent on the computer isn't for nothing, but rather we have a record of the comings and goings of our family to hand down through the generations. I try to transfer my posts once a week so they don't pile up and it becomes a huge undertaking. So, yes, I know he will read this. Happy Anniversary, Davey! I love you!
Grant, Ethan, and Sara Katherine (look how blond her hair is!) who came over to eat pizza and exchange gifts.
Grant's brother, Will in silly glasses.
My kids and the Martin kids. Ethan takes these friends with him EVERYWHERE we go as his "imaginary friends" (even though they aren't imaginary). He's so glad we have a mini van now so we have room to fit everyone.
I just really liked this picture of Sara Katherine. The girl has a thing for hats. Hopefully her head won't be as big as mine (really, it's big - I mean, look at my son!), and she'll be able to wear them. 
Sara Katherine and Zade, trying on various styles. I say them entertaining themselves peacefully = good.
Ethan, Bliss, Sara Katherine and Zade at Emily's house. We went up there this past Sunday and Monday to visit Aunt Lacy. Monday was the ONLY day her schedule and my schedule were going to meet up, so the kids and I took a short road trip. It was so good to visit with her and see the Archibalds for a little while. They are back from China safe and sound!
Ethan took this picture. He's quite the little photographer. He's going around telling everyone he's going to be "an artist" when he grows up. Don't know where that came from, but we'll go with it for now.
