Tonight's guest blogger is Jennifer, from Colwells in Carolina, and my good friend!. After reading her guest post, make sure you show her some love over at her blog. Thank you Jennifer!
My blog is Colwells in Carolina, all about our newlywed, marine corps adventure here in North Carolina! Sit back, relax, and enjoy a message from the future, of where my hubby and I might be on our 50th wedding anniversary...
The Colwells: A Fairytale Romance
50th Anniversary Announcement, February 14, 2060
Dustin and Jennifer met in 2003, while they both worked at Macaroni Grill back home in Georgia. They started dating the end of Jennifer's senior year of high school, and had their share (and some to spare) of ups and downs, break-ups and make-ups over the course of the next several years. They were married on February 14, 2010 in a beautiful beach ceremony in Florida.
At their rehearsal dinner, Jenn and Dustin set up a prediction jar. Family and friends predicted where the couple would be 10 years from the wedding day. The answers were hilarious, touching, and insightful and wrapped into one. They ranged from: 2 kids, white picket fence, Jenn teaching and Dustin working as a cop -- to 4 daughters and a female dog, so Dustin would forever be surrounded by women -- to a drawing of a ninja. (Hoping that last one was from the ring bearer, and not the groom!)
Dustin was a Marine, and stationed in North Carolina. They entered a phase known as "Colwells in Carolina". Jenn was happy to have a job as a kindergarten teacher, and Dustin was advancing his career in the USMC. Dustin stuck with the military, retiring eventually and beginning a second career as a teacher, still in North Carolina. The Colwells enjoyed their summers off, spending their time traveling to all 50 states with their 3 children, and even seeing a baseball game in every Major League Baseball Stadium (and saving the ticket stubs to prove it).
They set high expectations for their children, who all went on to attend and graduate college. Once their children all graduated college, Jennifer and Dustin celebrated by spending a year traveling the world. At the age of 60, both Jenn and Dustin retired from their careers as teachers, to instead spend their time visiting and spoiling grandchildren, watching sunsets from rocking chairs on a long wrap-around porch, and finally sleeping in on the weekdays! They celebrate their 50th anniversary, surrounded by children and grandchildren who have traveled from near and far to appreciate just how powerful and enduring true love can be! The happy couple's advice to others is to never go to bed mad, follow the golden rule, and listen to the song "All Because Two People Fell in Love" by Brad Paisley, just to get a picture of how big one couple's love can be.
Thanks for letting me guest blog, Nicole, and thank you all for reading!
