How Robbie and Jenni Began

How Did You Meet Your Husband?

This is sort of a comical story...and a long one. But no worries, I'll give you the condensed version!

Robbie and I grew up going to the same church, but we are 3 1/2 years apart in age. At that time, 3 1/2 years was a HUGE difference. I think in the 8+ years we knew of each other we only spoke a few times. Think about it this way--if you were a senior in high school would you hang out with a freshman?

We had tons of fun being in the same youth group together, and made lots of awesome memories with all our friends. I thought he was like the COOLEST person ever because he was so punk rock and different. He was definitely the cool guy but without being the cool guy, make sense? (Robbie hates it when I describe him that way...but that was my perspective)

1998 or 1999-ish?


Fast forward to when I was a senior in high school. Robbie called the house a couple times just to hang out, but I was so not even ready to just hang out with a boy. I never called him back, ever. It was so embarrassing when my mom would make a point to say "Hey you never called Robbie back" when Robbie was standing close-by. She was already convinced we were going to end up together back then. Moms!!

After a couple of years trying to get me to hang out with him, Robbie said he was ready to give up. And rightfully so!!! I don't know that I would've been so persistent. The summer of 2003 is when Robbie's friend Nick was getting married to my friend Shannon.

At the reception Robbie and his other friend Nathan came over to ask us girls to dance (gotta have your wingman, right?). Little did we know that everyone there was already scheming. I reluctantly told Robbie that I would dance the next slow dance with him. (To plead my case here: I was only 19 and having a boyfriend was the LAST thing on my mind. I was just about to move 100 miles away to college)

As fate would have it, the next slow song was the most cheesiest song ever. It was "I Swear" by All 4 One. I know, right?! Robbie and I started dancing (pic below) and the ENTIRE dance floor cleared. Everyone was so antsy to see us dance together. I remember my girlfriends on the side of the dance floor giggling hysterically. And I remember feeling my Dad staring at us...very intently.



Our first date was going to watch the movie "28 Days Later". I ended up driving home every weekend from Mizzou that semester, and a couple Saturdays Robbie drove the 200 mile trip just to bring me chinese food from my favorite local restaurant because I was so homesick. I ended up transferring to UMSL to finish my degree. :)

Our first "official grown up date" as we like to say was in February 2004 when we went to see "Oliver" at the Fox Theatre. We were so skinny back then!!



Robbie proposed to me in the Starbucks we went to on our first date. He had the lead singer of the band Calibretto 13 call my cell phone and sing my favorite song to me while Robbie snuck away to get the flowers and pull the ring out.

The Proposal, August 2006


We got married May 26th, 2007. 12 days after I graduated college, and 15 days after Robbie's last chemo treatment.


At the risk of sounding ridiculously cheesy, I will say that our lives are filled with more joy now than our wedding day. Through the mundane evenings of renting a movie to the exciting "firsts" with our son, the joy just keeps growing!