Shawn,

My future husband. It still sometimes feels weird to say those words, especially after all I’ve been through. During my darkest times and the end of my first marriage, I swore I would never get married again. I closed myself off, and made my heart inaccessible by anyone. My next crash-and-burn relationship left me anxious about my choice to leave my ex. I thought she was the best I’d ever get, even if I was being abused.

That all changed when I met you. Your kind eyes, boisterous laugh, and mutual love for felines drew me in (smooth move, wearing your Lil’ Bub tank top to our first date 😉). You showed me that maybe it would be OK to open my heart again. That you were a safe space. It was OK to be vulnerable again. You helped me navigate some pretty rough waters. I know you say I did it all on my own, and that I’m strong, and independent. That you’re proud of me for how far I’ve come. But, I wouldn’t be the same person had you not come into my life.

Your support was the one thing missing from my life. You provided me the support I needed to slingshot my business to where it is today. You are my sounding board, my rock, and just the dreamer that I needed in my life. Most importantly, you helped me heal.

When we first dreamed up our future school bus tiny home, I was cautiously excited. I’d had so many dreams dashed in my first marriage. Broken promises played like a broken record in my mind. But, we started planning our life together. We bought our school bus. The pile of scrap metal from discarded parts of our bus grew bigger and bigger. As did my anxiety that this dream would be snatched away from me, too.

One day though, it finally clicked. You are the person that I’ve been waiting for my whole life, and you weren’t about to leave. So I let go. Do you know how good it feels to finally dream again? I feel like we both do.

I love you and I can’t wait to marry you.

❤️Erika