In The Beginning

"Let's start at the very beginning. A very good place to start..."

In the beginning, I was just a single mom. Though I did want to have someone to share my life with, I wasn't in any hurry either. My son, Richard and I were getting along just fine on our own. Or, at least, I thought we were.

Richard's dad was in and out of his life for his first five years. I did what I could to make it possible for them to have a relationship but that didn't seem to matter. When Richard was just past his fifth birthday, we moved to Kentucky. I originally reasoned that in moving, we would be closer to his dad and he'd be able to spend more time with him. For a brief time, this was true and we worked things out well. However, his dad and I both started dating around the same time and that's where the trouble began.

I dated a man who was loving, kind and incredibly giving. Christopher dated a woman that simple only cared for herself. Though, I'm sure that makes me seem like I'm just the bitter ex, from what I knew of her at the time, that's exactly how I saw her, selfish. Chris stayed in Richard's life for months after our relationships began and I was thrilled. Not only did he have Jason, my boyfriend, showing him all manner of love and affection, he had his dad in his life as well. However, we lost Jason suddenly in an accidental shooting. With that one swift kick, our lives flipped upside down. Jason was taken from us without warning and Christopher, finding no one else to compete with, dropped out of Richard's life soon after.

For three years after Jason's death, I didn't regularly date anyone. Part of me wasn't ready to move on and another part of me wasn't willing to risk the heartbreak of loss again. Then, one day I got a phone call from a friend. She said she knew a guy who was looking to meet a nice woman and have a relationship. When I asked her to describe him, she told me I already knew him. After she told me his name my answer was a loud and clear "not no but hell no!"

Yes, I knew this man she wanted me to meet. He was loud, he was obnoxious, he could be rude. I didn't like him, not one bit. Okay...maybe a tiny bit, but only because I'd thought he was kind of good looking. Still, like a lot of the good looking guys out there, he seemed to be a jerk. Besides, last I'd checked, he was married and his wife could bend me in half without breaking a sweat. I told her I'd pass on the suggestion and invite; it might be a good night to stay home.

Still, my friend pushed and convinced me just to come hang out at her house. We were just going to have pizza and play cards. His son was there as were her boys and our kids were all friends. Despite my better judgement, I went along with it. My son is a little social butterfly and he'd be upset if he found out he'd missed spending time with his friends. So, off we went to eat pizza and play cards.

To my amazement, I had a great time with Donnie and couldn't believe how different he was without his ex-wife around. It's strange how much influence someone can have on your behavior and attitude. The next day my friend called asking if she could give Donnie my number. What's more, he was sitting at her kitchen table, waiting for my answer. Within minutes of hanging up with her, Donnie was calling. We seemed to talk about everything and nothing for hours. We laughed about having to schedule phone time with his teenager so they could both get in quality talk time.

For more than a month however, I refused to treat our relationship as anything more than a friendship. To begin with, I wasn't ready for Richard to get attached to someone. Then, there was the fact that I myself wasn't too sure I was ready to get attached either. Donnie was patient and very persistent, so the relationship pushed ahead. Before we knew it, we were moving in together. All of the sudden, I was drowning in a sea of testosterone. Donnie has two boys, Hunter and Bobby. While I have Richard. This definitely made me the odd woman out.

There are things that go on in our house that would make any woman crazy. My boys do things that just leave me speechless at times. Through this blog, I want to share the good and the bad, the silly and the serious and all the moments in between. You just never know what you'll get when you walk into my house but there's never a dull moment. Won't you join me on the ride?