E is for Everything, F is for Family

Dearest readers: it's time to condense. As the bloggers' challenge presses on without me, I feel it is time to catch up by whatever method is available to me. So in that vein, I make a logical conclusion in my head that my Everything is my Family. Hey, it's in alphabetical order.

The Miller family was founded in 1994. My college sweetheart and I had been together for nearly three years, and (though we had not graduated) it was time for us to forge the love of a lifetime. You know that reference, honey, I love you! On June 18, my Everything-Michael Miller and I, Jami Johnson Miller said "I do."

We met in September of 1991, my freshman year and his sophomore year at Northwest Missouri State. We were in Graphic Design I together, and the flirtation was very mutual. Ours was a whirlwind romance: He asked me to be his girlfriend on September 18th, 1991, he asked me to be his wife on January 18th, 1992, he presented me with a ring on March 18th, 1992 (yes, that's six short months)...and we were married on June 18th, 1994. Next year, we will celebrate 18 years of marriage....since '18' seems a momentous number in our history I plan to celebrate our love 18 times bigger than previous years :)

Since then, we have lived a life very like most middle class newly marrieds. We lived in a dinky second floor apartment with garage sale furniture

until we were finished with school (those were blissful days anyway). We went to Italy and Sicily for a month on a work study trip and were in Rome for our first anniversary. We made many wonderful friends on that trip and in college, many of them are still part of our life. Hi Heather, Troy, Janice, Brian, Jen et al! We moved same said shabby furniture to Kansas City in 1997, and then to our first home in Liberty in 1999. We made many more friends when we moved down to Missouri to be closer to Mike's family. We also went to Germany and Paris before we had kids. (That's us on the Eiffel Tower at right.) Hi Becki and Greg :)

The most notable exception to the somewhat common 'story of us' was that we waited for nine years before having children...this was a choice, not a difficulty. We wanted to be ready. Our families were indignant, ha ha ha. I still remember the bone-crushing hug Mike gave me when he came home from work the day in March that we found out we were expecting. I'd been forced to call him at work to tell him before he came home so he would know before the girls at work did. Hi Rheana and Mary :)

And then there were three! Wesley Christian Miller was born on November 6, 2003. He was the darling red-headed grandchild Gramma Jane foretold, and we love him so much. We marveled that those crazy nurses at the hospital who were actually going to send this tiny baby home with us. What were they thinking? *cue laughter*

Like most new parents lament, those days flew by so quickly. When Wes was not quite potty-trained, we had barely touched on the discussion of a second child and we were expecting again. There's a tribute to the power of suggestion: That time, God knew we were ready before we did. Keira Noelle Miller was born on April 25th, 2007. She is our little blond angel baby, and she shows us daily that cute has an attitude :)

Now as Mike and I watch our little family grow and learn, we are awed and amazed by our fierce love for our children. Wes is now seven, and Keira nearly four years old. They are an extension of my endless love for my husband, who is truly my everything. My family and I are so blessed, and I am so grateful that we are healthy and happy. I have faith that God has a place in Heaven for us that is truly beyond my imagination, but I tell you that I can't imagine that life here on earth gets much better than this.