Weddingbee Blog

Our story began back in the fall of 2004. I was a freshman in college, eager to move out from under my parents’ watchful eyes and to begin to grow as a person. I had just broken up with my boyfriend, citing reasons of independence and wanting to be at college unattached. I know that it sounds like a party-girl reason to break up with someone before going to college, but I had moved three hours away from home, and I didn’t want to be “that girl” in the dorm who was on the phone every night with a boyfriend whom she saw every couple of weekends when she drove home and missed out on the many activities around campus for it. Some people think or know they are going to marry their high school sweetheart; I knew I wasn’t. So I ended it and decided against relationships for at least my first year at school.

I spent the first couple of days on campus trying to get used to the tiny dorm room, the fact that I was suddenly living with my high school best friend, and of course—classes and cafeteria food. Finally one night my roommate and other friends from high school had enough and dragged me out of the room and onto campus. We left the all-girls dorm where most of the freshman stayed and headed toward the dorm next door that had a wing of all-male and a wing of co-ed living.

As we were heading into the all-male dorm, I bumped into a guy wearing the typical college-guy outfit: a football T-shirt and a pair of gym shorts with sandals. He apologized and shot this smile at me that dazzled and walked away with his buddies. I shook off the smile and told myself that crushes were not needed at this time and there were more important things to do. So I followed my friends up to their new friend J’s room. We were hanging out and chatting and possibly enjoying some adult beverages, when lo and behold football boy popped his head in to invite J to a party in his room. J immediately said that we would all be over in a few minutes. When the mysterious guy left, J explained that the guy and his roommate were called the Vodka Kings (I know, stereotypical partying football players, but there is more to him—I promise!) and they threw the best parties. So we headed over. Before I knew it, football boy had introduced himself as Mr. D and we started talking.

He asked if I knew anything about football. I told him that the Iowa State Cyclones were my state school of choice and that I had been a Green Bay Packers fan since I was four years old. He started laughing and replied that he, too, was a Cyclone fan, that his parents were actually shareholders for the Packers, and he had also been a fan for years and years. We kept talking about football, and I could tell I had impressed Mr. D with my vast knowledge. Before I left that night to head back to my dorm, he asked for my email address and my MSN name (which at our small, wireless campus was the same as asking for a phone number). I gave it to him, and as I walked back over to my dorm, I realized that my plans of staying single my freshman year of college were possibly flying out the window.

Mr. D and me shortly after we started dating in 2004 / Personal photo