hey yall! my name is Wynne + I’m so excited to be sharing my love story with yall today. My blog, Gloriously Ruined is a place where people tell their stories, we talk adoption [I talk about my two cute littles] and we encourage each other to change the world! I’ve been wanting to actually write out my love story, so without further adue.
This is me & my now husband, Stephen in November 2004 on the night we met in College Station, Texas. He would totally tell you we were set up on a blind date, but it was more of a group set up. You see he went to Texas A&M and I went to Baylor [about 100 miles from each other] and somehow our good friends met & started dating and decided to introduce us. The thing was, right before we met we had both “given up”. I remember clearly telling a good friend “I wasn’t getting married until I’m 30 [which sounded really old back then, haha]” and he felt the same way. We’d both had our fair share of dating and after so many years of not finding “the one”, we were both getting weary. So when we were to meet, I was trying not to get too excited. in case he was just like all the other relationships I had been in. but much to my dismay, he was completely different in a wonderful way. I’ll spare you all the details, but basically we both knew that night we were in for it. We might have had our first kiss that night [hey, don’t judge!]. This picture above was seriously hours after we met. he got my number on a napkin at lunch the next day and the rest is history.
This was our first “official” date at Holiday in the Park at Six Flags on a Pi Phi function with me 😉 we took this picture on the actual Titan rollercoaster [such risk takers]. Within about a month of this picture we said I love you [the day before Christmas Eve]. This was after introducing me to his entire family in his hometown & pointing behind my back and whispering “my future wife”. We spent new years eve in his favorite place on earth, Lake City Colorado, and after that I was IN. We spent [or really he spent] countless hours driving the 100 miles to visit me at Baylor and November 3, 2005 we got engaged at Baylor Ballpark in Waco.
I was obviously in shock [he’s great at surpirses] and so happy and in love. Immedietly after the proposal I started hounding him about when were going to get married, how many kids we were going to have, where we were going to live [planner much?]
After a long year of being engaged [and both graduating from college] we got married November 4, 2006 at my favorite place on earth, Horseshoe Bay, Texas. It was such a magical marvelous Christ centered weekend spent with family and close friends. and quite the fun party too I might add.
After the wedding we headed to Antigua to Jumby Bay for our honeymoon. We had a magical week then it was off to the real world – which for us was in Austin, Texas. We spent a great year in Austin [first time for me to move away from my hometown ever] being married, learning how to rely on each other, having lots of fun and making lots of new friends. We loved the culture of Austin and hoped to stay there 5 or so years, but as the good Lord would have it….He moved us out to west Texas [ oh no lord!] to Midland spring of 2008.
We bought a house, joined the church, got a dog, found some friends and I got a job. Then the bust happened [hello oil business]. but we are strong. and the good lord has us where we are for a purpose. we went from that first dog, Milly, to now….two dogs, a cat, and two babies!
When I met and fell in love with Stephen Elder, never in my wildest dreams would I have thought 8 years later we’d be standing in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia together meeting our children for the first time. I never thought we would have developed such a love and passion for the people of Africa and devote so much of ourselves to sharing the gospel with them, giving them clean water, sponsoring children and missionaries and desiring to one day [if god wills it] to live full time in the place we love so much. who know’s what He’s got in store for us. I’m just thankful that I have my best friend, life partner and soul mate leading our family every step of the way!
this is our family now: Wynne, Stephen, Asher and Camp [not pictured: Bagby, Milly & Eli, our furry babies]. 8 more years from now…I can’t even begin to guess how many more people will fill this picture. Thank you Jesus for giving me such a godly, supportive, goofy, people focused, encouraging best friend to do this life with!
