Humble Beginings -- Karsten's version

I first met the Dudley family one fall morning at Hope Church while visiting my brother and his family on Thanksgiving break 1998. Actually, it wasn't any more than a "hi, nice to meet you" and a handshake. However, 4 months later I was again in Springfield, IL visiting my new little niece Kaylee on my spring break when an encounter with the Dudley family caused my life to take a new turn. An innocent dinner invitation extended to me (because I happen to be in town the week my brother and his family were to be guests of the Dudleys) soon gave me the impression of a set-up. It dawned on me why my brother and sister-in-law were asking so many questions as to my impression of the Dudley girls, especially the oldest. Needless to say it was an interesting evening at the Dudley house. There were a lot of laughs and despite the nagging feeling of an unwanted set-up, I was pretty comfortable.

To keep from writing a novel, I will just say that I took the evening and analyzed it a bit. My conclusions were: nice family, cute girls, but age could be a problem. (Brooke was a senior in high school.) Never-the-less, I decided to keep in touch via email. I had already decided to move to Illinois from Georgia so I could be close to my new niece. It would be nice to have someone other than my family to talk to. So Brooke and I started chatting via email and IM. We hit it off quickly and thought that this new friendship could go somewhere.

I was being transferred to Peoria with Circuit City, so while I was apartment hunting, I would stop by the Dudley house for a visit. The first visit is a story unto itself, but let's just say that Brooke was a bit surprised! We had our first date on May 12, 1999. I even surprised her by driving up from Georgia to attend her graduation. I moved up shortly afterward and spent most of my summer driving from Peoria to Springfield to see her whenever I could.

As fairytale as it may seem, Brooke and I both knew this new relationship would lead to marriage. It was even discussed openly after only dating for 2 weeks. I look back know and think "how weird was that!"

After 4 long years of dating, we were married on July 19, 2003 in the backyard of the Dudley residence. (pretty much where it all began) Oh, by-the-way, by brother and Brooke's mom later confessed that that fateful dinner was indeed a set-up!