Love and Nature.

This past week, things have settled down between Mr. Persistent and me. I didn’t see him last Monday or Tuesday. Wednesday I went over there and we made dinner together. We make dinner together probably once a week and it’s way more fun and more delicious than with Man.

Later that night we were in his room talking about something and he put his arms around me and we kissed. He then goes…

“I……..

really like you. I want to say ‘I love you’, but that would be kind of weird since we’ve been dating for like a month.”

Awkwardly I responded, “yeah, it would be.”

Whoa. 

Here are my thoughts. Part of me kind of wanted him to say it. I’m feeling the same way he is. However, it’s the only milestone we have left since we double hit the meeting of the parents. I feel since we became “official” things have really taken off quite quickly. It feels like we’ve been together for so much longer than two months (yes, I’m counting since our first date which was two months ago yesterday). So, “inside” our relationship I’m all, “yeah, let’s just get the L word out of the way…it doesn’t change anything”, but then I step “outside” our relationship and I’m all, “whoa…it’s only been two months, what’s the rush.”

Friday night we hung out and got ready for camping (yep, I’ll get to that in a moment). We also watched Cabin in the Woods…which is not really something I recommend doing the night before you are going to a cabin in the woods.

Saturday we left for camping on some land that my family has about an hour away. I think I mentioned before that we had talked about going camping and he went all out and bought all these camping things. Initially I thought it was just going to be the two of us. However, he then asked if his two best friends could come because he really wanted me to meet them. I said that was fine and he said they might, it wasn’t for sure.

I didn’t hear any more about it on Saturday, so I figured they weren’t coming.

Nope. I was wrong.

So I get to his house and my mood was immediately changed. My Aunt Flo had a late visit this week (kind of scared me because I know Flo’s visits like clockwork and I took a test…no worries, I’m OK) and my emotions go to the wind when she visits.

It took about half-way there (we drove separately) for my mood to come back around and it ended up being a good time. I would go camping there again. His friends are really nice and asked me a lot of questions about myself. Late Saturday night when Mr. Persistent and I were in bed he almost dropped the L word on me again! I told him it was OK for him to say it, but he didn’t. We came back on Sunday, sat in his Jacuzzi and then slept from 3:30-8:45. Then we ordered pizza and were asleep again by 10:30. I woke up at 6:30 and could probably still have slept. Clearly nature takes a lot out of me.

Haven’t seen him yet this week. Maybe tomorrow, but I have four interviews that I need to prepare for and really want to just be at my apartment. No, he has never stayed at my place…I’m always over there. Doesn’t totally bother me because he has a house and central air and I live in an apartment with no air, so it’s unbearable at times…but once and a while would be nice.

My birthday is next Tuesday and we are going to a nearby city to a nice sushi restaurant. He’s never had sushi before and I hope he likes it. I’m kind of intrigued as to what he’s going to do for my birthday. Army Boy never recognized my birthday (no gift, let alone barely gave me a “happy birthday”) so I’m not expecting him to get me anything other than dinner, but I’m still curious if he did get me something, what it would be.

Overall things are still going really well. We take pictures together (he even bought a frame to put a picture of the two of us in!), laugh, and lately we’ve been talking about when we first met and how we felt and his pursuit of me.

Meet the Parents x2

What a crazy, fun, exhausting week! Mr. Persistent was on vacation and he and I have spent every day together since Wednesday. He cleared out an entire drawer for me to put my things in! Makes me think of that line from About Last Night…”a drawer? A whole drawer?!” He also said the other day, “when are you going to fall in love with me so you can move in and I can kick my roommates out.” That’s twice in one week he’s mentioned living together. I told him that I can’t move out during the winter months, so maybe next year if we’re still dating. We’ve also been talking about a dog. I know we’re not getting a dog together anytime soon and it’s hypothetical, but it’s fun to talk about it. We both want to name it the same! Max.

On Friday, I went over to his parent’s for their Father’s Day fish fry. So, I met his parents. His sister and her family were there as well, so it was nice to talk to familiar faces.

I brought his mom a bottle of wine because one of the first times I went to Mr. Persistent’s house, he offered me wine and said his mom buys wine for him so she has something to drink when she visits. When I was at their house a few weeks ago while they were out of town, I noticed she had wine bottles everywhere and wine-y decorations. I thought I was going to score points.

Well, things got awkward.

She asked if I brought the wine for me to drink and I told her it was a gift for her. She goes, “oh I don’t drink wine”.

Uhm, what?

I didn’t really know how to respond so I said, “well, it’s a pretty bottle, so you can put it on display.” It was really weird and she just kept saying that she doesn’t really drink and she’ll keep for the next time I’m there.

Mr. Persistent told me that she came up to him later in the evening and said she felt bad about saying that, she was just really nervous.

Overall, the night went pretty well. I honestly think his sister having three young kids makes it easier because less attention is on me, and talking to his 6-year-old nephew is hysterical. His mom told him that she likes me and I fit in really well. Phew! Don’t worry, I made sure to use my manners and thank them for dinner 😉

After dinner, we went up to my cottage for the weekend. He met my grandma and then my parents came up for dinner Saturday night.

My grandma is obsessed with him. Every time he left the room, she would hunch her shoulders and go, “isn’t he cute?!” I was a little nervous because he has a lot of tattoos and my grandma is very against tattoos, but she clearly got over it.

My mom also really likes him. My dad, however, is a different story. My mom told me that my dad didn’t want to meet him because that makes me dating someone a real situation which makes the idea of “losing me” (read: getting married) that more real.

My dad is very quiet and reserved so I didn’t expect him to talk too much, but I thought he would have put a little effort into talking to Mr. Persistent…asking him questions. Nope. I was a little embarrassed, but I understand. Mr. Persistent is the first guy my parents have met since my freshman year of college 8 years ago. It’s a big deal for them to meet him.

Overall, I think the weekend was a success and brought us closer. I know that a month and half may seem a little early to meet someone’s family, but both situations were so casual, so it made it easier. He still needs to meet my sister and other grandma and they are the most loud. My sister won’t be a problem, though apparently she already has my awkward photos ready to show him. My other grandma is a handful, so meeting her will either make or break our relationship. Not really, but almost.

Things are going incredibly well and it kind of scares me. I had a small panic on Friday because we had seen each other every day since Wednesday and then we were going away this weekend and meeting families. I was afraid this was starting to play out like it did with Man – that everything was happening too fast. However, I think it’s different with Mr. Persistent than it is with Man because didn’t jump the gun right out of the gate. We took a month to get to this spot.

This week he is back to work so I don’t think we will see each other as much as we did this past week. I think the space will be good for us as I don’t want to spend every day with him. However, I will say that I am going to hate sleeping alone tonight because we’ve spent five of the past seven nights in the same bed and I really got used it.

Moving Right Along

Things with Mr. Persistent have been moving along quite swimmingly. The last time I posted I think I had just met his sister. Well, last week we spent Tuesday, Thursday and Friday night together. Tuesday we had decided that we were exclusively dating (eee!).

On Friday I was leaving work and my phone had texts from about five different people talking about Facebook and Mr. Persistent. I was so confused, but started to wonder if he just Facebook officialed us.

He did. 

So we are now Facebook official. It’s not a big deal, but it kind of is because I really don’t like Facebook official (as I’ve mentioned before).

He sometimes makes comments that catch me off guard. It’s not that they bother me, per se, I think I’m just not used to someone talking like this. Last Thursday he made a comment that he was “falling fast”. On Saturday when I picked him up to take him to a friend’s party, we were talking about his kitchen not being super nice and he said, “if we keep dating and you move in, I’m going to completely remodel it.”

Uhm…what? We’ve been seeing each other for a month and a half. That’s crazy talk. 

He then made the comment that it was, indeed, crazy talk. I don’t think he really meant anything by it, I think he was just talking. Still, the fact that he maybe entertained the idea of us continuing to date to the point where I would move in is a good sign, right?

Last night he told me that I should keep stuff over at his place (shower stuff, contact things, toothbrush, etc) and I should bring clothes over so that I can just get ready over there instead of driving back to place in the morning.  That’s kind of a big step. And pretty exciting. Other than last night (because I wasn’t 100% sure I was going to spend the night), I’ve been carrying my glasses and toothbrush in my purse. It will be nice to just have those things there and not worry about them weighing my purse down (or that I have a big enough purse to hold them).

I’m incredibly happy with him and the pace things are moving at. We have so much fun together – the other night we spent about 30 minutes on our phones looking up American flag apparel on Amazon. It may not sound exciting, but we had fun. Here’s hoping things keep going well for us.

Dating vs. Seeing

When I pulled up to Mr. Persistent’s house we immediately left for his sister’s. I had to take a few deep breaths in the truck because I was starting to panic about this situation. However, it ended up being very chill and low-key. I felt like we were all just hanging out and having natural conversation; I wasn’t really grilled on questions which made me happy. Not much interaction with the kiddos, but I talked to the oldest one a bit. They are such little nuggets and Mr. Persistent is amazing with them. Of course this made my biological clock tick come out of the closet and tick loudly in my ear. I love seeing cute guys that are good with kids. Overall, they are a really nice family and I could see myself spending time with them again.

After his sister’s we went and grabbed a bite to eat a bar nearby and then were off to the movie! We just sat in the truck during movie, not outside. He had blankets and pillows which was fun. Frozen kept pausing due to technical difficulties so we took that opportunity to make out. The third time must be a charm because, finally, kissing him gave me chills. Captain America was pretty good, but felt never ending and he definitely fell asleep for a bit. The movie ended about 1:00 a.m. He told me that next time we go, he’s going to get a mattress for the bed of his truck and maybe a camper. Really go all out.

We got back to his place and he invited me in to hang out. Then he said that he might fall asleep on me, but I could spend the night. He gave me shorts to sleep in. So we got into bed and one thing led to another, but we didn’t have sex. Then we talked until about 4:00 in the morning before we fell asleep. Woke up and hung out for most of the day today in bed watching TV and talking. He also made us brunch in bed and he made me coffee. It was really cute. No one has ever made me breakfast in bed before.

He made a comment about us now seeing each other and it got me thinking about the difference between “dating” and “seeing each other”. Is there one? To me, I thought “seeing each other” means you’ve gone out a few times and “dating” is more of a relationship. My mom thinks he meant it as in he’s not seeing anyone else but me. Last week he did say he hasn’t been on Match since he met me. Sometimes I forget that we met on Match since we never really interacted online and when we did, it was back in January.

We don’t have plans yet to see each other again, but I’m thinking one day soon this week. He told me he wants to take me for a motorcycle ride. It’s still early to determine anything, but I feel really optimistic about this one. Even though he’s not my usual type, I really like him and so far, thing seem to be going very well and I’m happy.

Enter Mr. Persistent’s Family

Well, not yet, but very soon. Last night Mr. Persistent told me that his sister and brother-in-law invited us over for a drink before our movie. Yowza! I feel that’s a pretty serious move. That means he’s talking about me to his family. Which is kind of soon? Maybe not. I still don’t know how this dating thing works. We have only been seeing each other for just over a month and only has four dates. She also has three young kids so I’m guessing I’ll meet them as well.

I am so nervous (but also excited)! I’ve never met siblings before. My HS boyfriend had two older sisters that were much older and lived out of state. Army Boy was an only child and Man’s siblings were also out of state. Plus we only dated for a few weeks, so there’s that.

I’m sure it will be fine, but I read on the Google that meeting the sister is almost, if not more, important than meeting the mom. Plus, meeting his nephews and niece? That’s a lot of impressions for me to make. Especially since I typically don’t give great first impressions due to my resting bitch face. I also don’t usually do very well with small children which may seem odd given my profession. I love little nuggets, but they scare me.

Tonight I went up to my parent’s for some things and will head back tomorrow afternoon. He told me to be to his place around 4:30-5:00 and we are leaving from there. We won’t get back from the movie until about 1 am, so I have a feeling the bed in my apartment may remain empty this weekend…

Didn’t Blow It!

Mr. Persistent text me last night asking how my weekend was. I guess he really does like me. So I invited him over for dinner tonight.

I was so nervous because a) we hadn’t seen each other in two weeks and b) what if my meal turned out terrible? I made grilled flank steak with a black bean pasta tossed with zucchini, red/yellow/orange peppers, mushrooms and chives. Meat was amazing and the pasta was pretty good…needed something else, maybe pesto. I also made delicious homemade brownies, but he didn’t eat any.

He said it was delicious and he would eat it again. He said he doesn’t really cook and when it’s his turn for dinner, he’ll just take me out. Haha.

We have such quirky commonalities. In addition to thinking our dads look like Tom Hanks, he has a shamrock tattoo on his chest. I have a shamrock tattoo with a dancer on my lower back and I only got the shamrock because I saw a guy with a shamrock tattoo on his chest my freshman year of college and thought it was cool. I was 18.. He also has a lot of random tattoos I’ve learned which is not what I expected.

He also said that he hasn’t been on Match since he met me. This weekend he is taking me to a drive in theater to see Frozen and then the second Captain America. I’m so excited because I’ve never been to a drive in!

Now for the iffy part. Before he left, he leaned in and we started making out. After a little bit he awkwardly goes, “I’m not sure how far you want this to go.” and I said, “not very far.” So we just made out. I’m not sure if it’s been a while since he’s made out with a girl or I just make him nervous, but no one’s ever said that to me.

Anyway, I’m not sold on his kisses. I feel we click in every other area, but the making out is not great. It’s not terrible, but doesn’t knock me off my feet. However, I feel it has potential so I’ll keep plugging away with him until we get it perfect.

Maybe it was the ambiance – we were watching The World Wars on the History channel, so Hitler in the background doesn’t make for the most romantic setting.

So far, things are definitely moving in the right direction. I think this weekend will also determine a lot in terms if we keep seeing each other or end things. Though, I don’t really see a reason to stop.

Will update this weekend!

Did I Do the Right Thing?

As I sit here typing, my stomach is filled with what feels like butterflies trapped in a net.

Mr. Persistent and I have been talking almost every day this week while he was up north. Thursday I asked if he had any big holiday plans and he said, “hanging out with you.”

cue butterfly-filled smile.

This morning we started talking and figuring out what to do. All of a sudden, he invites me to his roommate’s cabin with his roommate and his roommate’s girlfriend for the entire weekend. As in, two nights.

I was so torn. Part of me really wanted to because it sounded so fun. However, we’ve seen each other three times, kissed once, I haven’t seen him in a week and a half, so I wasn’t sure if I was ready for that type of situation. I mean, I don’t know if we’re dating and I’m not ready to sleep with him yet. I’ve done the jump into a relationship thing and it ended badly. I really like him and wanted to take it slower this time.

D said numerous times, “even if you want to go, it’s too soon.” My mom said, “if you don’t go, you’ve lost him.” I had no idea what to do.

Ultimately, I told him that it sounds awesome, but an overnight trip was too soon for me. My mom said I kissed him goodbye and my grandma said I should just become a nun. So supportive, right?

He apologized and said he was planning on me coming with him, but he understood why I can’t. Then he says, “I hope you don’t write me off for this, but I am going, I do it every year.”

I told him that it sounds like an awesome time and I hope he wasn’t going to write me off for not going.

So. I really hope I didn’t just blow things. If he never talks to me again, then I think all he really wanted was to bed me. If he is a real man, then he will overlook it and we’ll make plans for this week. Or…he wouldn’t have gone up north and hung out with me instead. It sounds like maybe he had this planned for a while and wanted to include me.

I just feel so sick right now. I was looking forward to seeing him and now I won’t. However, I really do think it was too soon for that situation. If we had seen each other one more time and kissed more, I would not have hesitated…but three times in one month is just too early for me. I don’t know why I even feel guilty or that I need to justify my answer.

Sigh. Everything happens for a reason, right? Here’s hoping the story of me and Mr. Persistent continues..

Moving Forward.

Mr. Persistent and I have talked every single day since Wednesday. Then, on Saturday afternoon he randomly texts me, “My mom says you’re very pretty:)”

…Ummm, what?

That means he had to have a) mentioned me to his mom and then b) showed her my picture! Not sure how he showed her my picture because he hasn’t viewed my profile in a few days.

Not that I can say much because I definitely showed his picture my grandma, mom and sister…

Tonight I asked him what his schedule was like this week to see if maybe we could get together. He said he was going up north with his dad until Thursday.

Then he says…

…are you ready?

“I was thinking when I get back we should definitely hang out more often. See where this takes us.”

Ahhhhhhhh!

I’m not really sure what exactly that means. Are we dating? Exclusive? How often is more often? We are seeing each other now about once a week…so is more often twice a week?

Either way, I’m pretty excited! However, I’m a little nervous because I feel like he is too good looking for me. My mom said he looks like “Fergie’s husband”…aka Josh Duhamel. I think he may be the best looking guy I’ve dated. We shall see what happens!

Will update more later this week!

And Then He Kissed Me

Last night Mr. Persistent and I had our third date. We went to see The Neighbors (hilarious movie). He invited me to his house and then we could ride to the theater together. I got to his house around 6:20 p.m. and we hung out and a drank some wine before the movie. I sat on his chair and he sat on his couch. I really like his house – it’s put together very nicely (I think his mom must be an interior designer or something because he said she decorated it).

Turns out we both think our dads look like Tom Hanks! How bizarre is that?! It was so funny because he goes, “I want you to meet my dad and I want to meet your dad” and we ended up finding pictures of our dads to show each other.

After the movie, we went back to his house and he invited me in to hang out. We watched almost all of The Campaign, talked and drank more wine. We both sat on the couch and while he sometimes would lean in my direction, nothing happened. No cuddling, no kissing, nada.

I was starting to wonder if he was ever going to kiss me and the wondering was driving me insane and building anticipation. The movie ended so I told him it was getting late and that I should head home.

We started to hug, but then he put his arms around my waist and leaned in for the kiss. So we stood there and briefly made out. It was OK…pretty good. As I mentioned in a post with Man, I think first kisses/make outs are usually somewhat awkward because you’ve never kissed them and have to adjust to their style. Maybe that’s just me. Plus, he’s taller than I am so I had to keep going up on my toes and it would hurt my feet.

Before I left and he said he hopes to see me soon. I would honestly love to hang out with him tonight and I text him asking how his day was. So far, no response. I probably won’t see him until next week as I’m gone almost all weekend.

Things seem promising and that’s good. I just hope that now we’ve kissed, we will start talking and seeing each other more. I don’t want to hang out every day, but a solid 1-2x a week would be cool and talking maybe every day? Doesn’t have to be all day, but you know a check-in on how our day is going would be nice. I just don’t want it to be like how it was with Army Boy because that was too casual, but Man was too serious. I’m like Golidlocks, I want it to be just right.

He’s really not the “typical” guy I go for. He doesn’t look like a defensive lineman that could break me, but he’s not super skinny. I think we may have the same size butt and I never go for that (they need to have a bigger butt than I do, because I pack a lot. Haha). I also always go for blue eyes and his are green. We shall see what happens, but I’m feeling pretty optimistic as the butterflies are definitely fluttering and I smile every time I think about him.

Cue Butterflies.

Mr. Persistent text me late last night and asked how my day was. We were talking about thunderstorms when all of a sudden he texts…

“I can’t wait to see you. I know you’re busy Tuesday. So I was thinking maybe Wednesday or Thursday we could hang out?”

Butterflies immediately swarmed my stomach. He’s never really indicated that he’s been interested in me until now. I mean, we’ve made it past two dates so obviously he has to be somewhat interested, but you know what I mean? His comment just made me smile and I’ve been re-reading it all day.

I still don’t know what we are doing…if we are doing an activity or literally just hanging out. I honestly can’t wait to see him either and want to see him as soon as I can, so I said Wednesday. If I didn’t care about my sanity, I would have gotten together with him tonight. However, I had a meeting and didn’t know how late it would go.

I didn’t tell him that I can’t wait to see him, though, because I need to maintain some mystery, but I did tell him that I was looking forward to seeing him.

Will update after our date on what we did and how things went. Wish me luck! 🙂