A Move in the Right Direction

There was really no end to the tunnel in which Zip and Girl’s realtionship was rolling.  There seemed to be a light, but it was more of a moving target.  Zip kept requesting patience and that eventually they would be together soon.  Later that Fall, Girl moved to the location that Zip had vacated in the Spring.  The person that was running the operation was incompetent and needed to be removed from there.  Girl did not want to go back and had to be convinced by various people in the Home Office that this move was necessary and her strengths in operations could turn the department around.  Girl did not want to go back to a department that she had left years ago.  There were many of the same people there and she would be retracing her steps – not something Girl was very fond of.  Her only consolation was that it was much closer to where she lived and would take less gas and travel time, she could see the boys more often, and her pay would increase because of the volume of her department.  Girl explained to the team once she arrived, that she was there to fix the problems and once done and verified, she would be moving onto a new assignment.  Girl was not sure what this was, but she wanted to be upfront about her plans to manage the team’s expectations of the future.

At the same time, Zip had been promoted to a role that would have him travelling across the country, while having to spend time each week in the Home Office, three hours away from Girl.  This started to put the relationship back into serious-mode, they could see each other every weekend with Bubba and Peanut!

Push Comes to Shove and Ferdinand the Bull

Push did come to shove that Spring and Zip found a new location in his old hometown, 2000 miles away.  He moved there because that was what he said he wanted to do 5 years earlier when he got to the job.  Girl was very sad.  Lonely too.  Girl could not understand the decision.  Girl could not decide if Zip was stubborn or if she was being selfish by thinking he was stubborn.  All Girl knew was that without him there, she needed to develop her skill for keeping busy, meeting new people.

Girl found many ways to occupy her time.  Of course, work took up a lot of time.  Girl was able to spend more time with Bubba and Peanut. Bubba played soccer, so it was fun to get out and watch him play.  Peanut was also signed up, although his form of play was more like ‘picking daisies’ similar to Ferdinand the Bull.  This type of soccer play actually prompted the purchase of the book so that Girl could share one of her favourite stories with the boys.

Christmas Comes Again

The second Christmas was not much better than the first.  Although Girl and Boy had a discussion about what each was buying for the children, there still turned out to be duplicate items.  Frustrating for a mom who prides herself on listening to her children and seeking out special things.  Girl discussed with Bubba and Peanut that from now on they should make 2 lists with different items so that each family can choose something different. (Sure Christmas Lists are probably not the greatest habit for kids, spoiling them quickly, but at least it was a solution to the problem).  Girl spent Christmas Eve at her condo alone, relaxing with a glass of wine and watching a movie.  On Christmas morning Zip stopped in for Christmas coffee before Girl went to pick up the boys up.  Girl and the children went back to the condo for their Santa gifts and later to MammaMia’s for Christmas lunch.  They took their now annual Christmas photo together.  It was a nice day.  Again – a short one, because with Girl’s work, she needed to be there much earlier to get set up for a huge sale day.  Things were finally getting into a routine at work too.  Girl was excelling at her role, developing her team and becoming a training location for the region.

Girl began to think about the future and her career.  What else could she do?  How could she apply her skills and continue to grow?  Was the money she was earning worth the time she had to invest?  Some weeks, if she thought about it, her hourly wage was about the same as she was making in her first department store job. Where did Zip fit, if at all?  What would she do if she changed jobs?  Lots of questions – who knew that life could be so complicated?

New Family Traditions Begin

The rest of the week progressed and all went well – for real!  Tour of the ruins, walks on the beach and many dinners and drinks.  The group went their respective ways and were to reconnect at different times in the future.  The memories made were amazing.  Fun for all, to the point where one couple could not make it to the beach for the last night’s beach party with the resort (too much fun in the sun)…balloon hats and animals, drinks and food on a stick, fire dances and limbo lines – a trip to remember!

Alas, back to reality.  The honeymoon days truly over and time moving onward towards the boys birthdays in the month of October.  Thanksgiving Weekend was held for the first time at Zip and Girl’s home.  This tradition would continue for the next 5 years (or more….).  The entire family would get together for the weekend and bunk wherever they would fit.  It was cozy, relaxing and the beginning of creating a family life for Zip, Girl and the kids.  It was Bubba’s birthday too – so the weekend could not have been more fun – kids playing everywhere, card games in the evening and Girl cooked her second turkey – Zip’s favourite meal!  And so a new life begins…

Something Stupid Gets Started

The day went off without a hitch.  Well, almost.  Girl had forgotten the CD’s she needed for the ‘walk down the aisle’ music.  Zip greased the DJ and he provided us with his whole music collection.  Girl and Zip eventually picked “Something Stupid” by Frank Sinatra.  It was a beautiful song – great rhythm, graceful and light.  They still laugh about it today!  Bubba walked Girl down the aisle on his arm and peanut carried the rings in a silver bowl filled with sand from the beach.  And boy was it hot!  At 11 am it was 98 degrees outside.  The ceremony started at 11:05 am, pictures at 11:20 am and back into the pool by noon.  The couple and the guests spent the afternoon playing water volleyball and relaxing by the pool with drinks.  At 6 pm, the bar was closed off for a private reception where Zip and Girl hosted their guests with the hotel manager to a champagne cocktail before dinner.  Bubba and the Best Man both spoke a few words of congratulations to start the evening off right.

If you have ever heard the words to the song, “Something Stupid” refers to saying ‘I Love You’.  The words in the song set up a beautiful scene, as if two lovely people were sitting out at a cafe in wrought iron chairs having a glass of champagne.  Both cannot believe how lucky they are to be in that moment in time and simply blurt out ‘I love you’, with all the intention and emotion that comes with saying I Love You for the first time.  That is how Zip and Girl felt.  That is how Zip and Girl feel.  Everyday – lucky to have found one another, ready to live life together and be present in every moment as if they were/are sitting at that cafe table enjoying the first I love you.

The Wedding Gets Started

Planning for the wedding and getting everyone on board was an easy task. Well, sort of.  At the last-minute, Bro & Sis said they would not be able to attend – no excuses, just not coming.  Girl and Zip asked MammaMia and Nonno to witness for them with the Best Man and Amazing Woman.   Girl and Zip left a few days before the rest of the group coming (16 wonderful people) so that they could take care of the government requirements from country of Mexico.  Before Girl left, she had been working in a very hilly area of the country.  Enjoying her running (started early in the Spring) Girl thought it would be great to hit the hills.  Well, good thought!

 She severely damaged her ankles and spent much of the first 5 days of vacation lying in the sun with bags of ice on her feet.  Zip was wonderful, getting Girl’s ice refreshed each time he went to the bar for drinks.  Eventually the beach waiter brought the ice with the drinks – great service!!

Do I Hear Wedding Bells?

The trip was fantastic.  Everyone had a great time jumping waves, swimming, sleeping and eating…of course, making new friends.  Zip got to participate in a Michael Jackson look-a-like contest – quite funny!  And Girl did not know that he could do a version of the moonwalk!  Peanut made friends with all the kids around, Bubba simply got a great tan and enjoyed time with Girl.  But it was back to reality soon enough and the routine picked up again.  Zip was off to his part of the country, Girl back to her work and weekend visits, kids back to school and their regular routine.

In February many new things started to happen.  Girl was offered a permanent role in her new position.  The project was a success and would be implemented company-wide with her leadership and the support of the team that she was already working with to build the project detail.  Zip applied for and was promoted to a new area, right up the street from Girl’s temporary condo near the Home Office.   When Zip came to town, he moved into Girl’s condo and put his belongings into storage.  This saved the company money…always thinking!  On the second night they were in the condo, Zip was standing in the kitchen when Girl came home.  He was about to start dinner.  Zip turned to Girl and instead of asking what she would like for dinner, Zip asked Girl to marry him.  Of course Girl said yes!  And instead of having dinner, they went ring shopping!!! Zip was smart enough to realize that Girl would like to pick out her own ring with him instead of Zip making an unusual choice.  Oh…and dinner was picked up later on the way back.

The Christmas Miracle

Christmas was coming and Zip was preparing to spend a quite Christmas Day sleeping and resting before getting back into a hectic end to the retail season.  Girl was not happy about this – why should he be alone on Christmas Day?  When Zip’s boss asked what he was doing and explained, she was indignant and insisted that he fly home to spend the day with family.  (Obviously not the same boss as before!)  Zip called Girl at work and she was so excited that she burst into tears – Christmas Miracles can happen!

Back to the Story…

So back to the story… Zip has been promoted!  Zip moved across the country in the other direction.  No longer living close by for weekend visits, Zip and Girl went shopping to set up his new condo in another part of the country.  Knowing that this move was not going to be a long one, Girl was happy to pick out furniture to get Zip set up with items that would eventually move into a house that they shared.  No, wedding proposals and a ring had yet to be provided, but the relationship was solid and moving in the right direction.  Constant contact and daily calls kept the two in touch and becoming closer as time went along.  Zip and Girl had been discussing marriage – mostly the ‘where’ of the event.  Having both been married before, they were looking into a destination wedding in Mexico.  Zip and Girl had travelled there numerous times and were quite happy about the idea.