Duke Family: First Comes Love...8 years of love so far

First comes love...I think many couples make a big deal out of Valentine's Day or even their Wedding Anniversary. I have to admit that February 2, is the most special of days to me. It was 8 years ago today that Casey and I had our very first date. We went to a high school dance and could not have had more fun. I look back and think, "we were so young!" but I have felt many times since that night that we were meant to find each other at that moment and to be together forever.

This is us at Ottavios on that fated day. We ate and played with so many good friends. Embarassingly enough, since this was my very first date, my family showed up to capture the moment on film. From this day on, we have been in love, but we have also been best friends who were there to help one another grow up and achieve all we ever wanted.

Then comes marriage...After a mission, way too much drama--thanks to me, and 4 1/2 years, we got married. That was the happiest, most joyous day of my life. To kneel across the altar in the Temple and be sealed to my best friend for all eternity was a dream come true. That day our sealer told us that "Julie and Casey have known each other a very long time, even before they came to this earth." We were made for one another, and it all started with Casey playing the guitar and a high school dance.

Then comes...a dog. We got Eleanor just 3 months after our wedding. I think it was the first time I started to feel like we had a family. She's silly, but she has been there for us and is a loyal part of our little unit.

Then comes a baby in a baby carriage...Now we have our little angel. I look back on the last 8 years and they seem to have flown by. I often get overwhelmed with life. The laundry. Work. Dishes. I find myself being unhappy because things are not perfect. But today, today I am overwhelmed that my life turned out so wonderfully. When you're sixteen and you like a boy, you enjoy putting your name next to his. You dream about your wedding day and being in love forever. Now despite the laundry, the dishes, and the never-ending list of life, I get to be Julie Duke and be with him always.