People often ask us how we met each other. The answer is simple at least in my opinion, God brought us together. I had an account on Eharmony and had very little success with it so I logged in to make sure my membership didn't renew and decided to look one last time since I still had about a month on my membership. Joanna had just started her membership shortly before that. I happened across her profile which had a high score match and saw that she was a preacher/teacher and thought "She would likely never be interested in me" and moved on.... that is when the seed was planted.

Over the next few days, I kept thinking about the profile and how I thought that Joanna sounded like a neat person. I had the thought that I should reach out, but kept thinking she would never be interested. Finally the thought was so persistent that I messaged her about her profile. To my utter amazement after what seemed like forever, she responded to my inquiry. We started chatting back and forth and finally decided to meet at Rockwood mini golf.

We had a lot of fun playing mini golf and then sat and talked for well over an hour. The rest is history so to speak.

This was the third time I'd signed up for eHarmony. I resolved to take it seriously, reach out to a couple new guys every week, respond kindly to everyone who messaged me, and stay open. Whom did God want for me?

After a month or so getting nowhere, Daniel messaged me. He said he liked my profile and asked about my weekend. I checked out his profile. My first thought was "Oh no. He has a dog in his profile pic!" (I'm a cat person.) He figured out my name from my graduation photo and googled me. Then he confessed what he'd done. I laughed. It was the same detective work I myself would do, but I know better than to admit to someone that I'd researched them! He apologized and admitted it came across as a little creepy. But someone who likes to research and makes me laugh was definitely up my alley.

We dated a couple times and I still wasn't sure what to think. Then one day Daniel asked me to be myself--no masking, no pretending ever. I was floored. No one wants me to be myself! Most people want me to be like myself but a little different in some way that makes them feel more comfortable. That was the day Daniel became Mr. Wonderful.

I made peace with the dog. (Ezra is very sweet and doesn't bark.) Daniel and I have traveled a lot together. We've made it through family crises together. We've taught ESL together to immigrants. We've visited three Six Flags parks and ridden a lot of roller coasters together. We've faced health crises together. We've built a solid partnership together. Daniel is my ministry partner and my friend. I look forward to many more adventures with him.