Lemons and Labs: Fast Forward

So now that you know how Mr. Lemon and I met and when we fell in love, I am going to give you the fast forward version of the next 8.5-9ish years. Mr. Lemon graduated his senior year in 2003 and had enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. He left for Basic Training in Parris Island in August of 2003. While Mr. Lemon was in the USMC, I finished up my Senior Year of High School. Mr. Lemon soon hurt his knee and received an honorable discharged from the Marines. Mr. Lemon enrolled in the local Community College and I was off to Millersville University (about 2 hours away from home) to start college. Four years later, we both graduated Mr. Lemon with a Criminal Justice Degree and me with a Political Science Degree. I came home and took a job as a Nanny. Although I loved my Nanny gig, I needed health benefits that the family I was working for could not provide. So my BFF Ali who I mentioned in the previous post offered me a job at the Bank where she was working.

Me and Mr. Lemon at his USMC Graduation - November 2003

(sorry for the bad quality - it was taken on disposable camera)

Mr. Lemon showing off his bunk

My College Graduation - May 2008

Ok, ok, I know I said this would be the fast forward version but there is a crap load of memories from 9 years that I have to dwindle down to a paragraph or two...So bear with me here! Thanks.

Ok, so I was loving my job at the Bank and loving my benefits and Mr. Lemon went back to school to learn about HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) and got his Certification. In November of 2009, we purchased our first home together. It was an exciting day and it was a huge deal to us. The beginning proved to be challenging in ways that we had never thought of. Like "Oh crap, you mean we seriously have to cook dinner every night?" and "Holy hell, cable really costs that much??" To this day, we are still trying to figure out the whole 'being a grown up' deal.

As if our lives weren't stressful enough, we decided to throw a puppy into the mix, sure why the hell not? In August of 2012, we brought home Moose Halladay Lemon our Chocolate Labrador Retriever. He was the cutest thing I had ever seen. From that point on, our entire lives revolved around Moose. We took him everywhere. We knew the Petsmart people on a first name basis. I can completely relate to people who say "we don't remember what life was like before we had so and so." Yes, usually these people are referring to their children but hey, Moose was our baby as far as we were concerned.

Meet Mr. Moose Halladay Lemon - October 2010

One year later I found this little Yellow Lab on the internet. The owner did not want her because she had a mark on her face. This was enough for me and before I knew it, an hour later all three of us (Myself, Mr. Lemon, and Moose) were on our way to go get our new addition.How could someone not want a puppy due to a mark on their face? In August of 2011, we brought home Ms. Maci Lee Lemon. Moose immediately took a liking to her and became the best big brother. They are besties for life and they bring so much happiness to my and Mr. Lemon's life.

Moose getting a bath

Introducing: Ms. Maci Lee Lemon - August 2011

Ok so that brings us to November 2011. Life was pretty good, if I do say so myself. Mr. Lemon and I were both employed, had our first home together, and our two fur babies. I was being ever so patient with Mr. Lemon. I hardly ever hinted at the fact that we had BEEN TOGETHER FOR NINE YEARS AND LIVED TOGETHER AND STILL WERE NOT ENGAGED!!!! Nope never. Ok, so yeah maybe I was getting ~~aggravated~~ a little bit impatient but hey, how long does a girl need to wait for a ring around here?

I will leave you with some pictures of what else??

Yup, you guessed it.

Lemons and Labs!