11.5 years ago I met Joey,

who became a great friend

For 9 years we were friends,

through many ups and downs,

friends we definitely stayed!

On December 31st of 2006, New Years Eve; that all changed!

Friends we stayed, but just became so much more!

After a year and 3 months of dating,

Saturday, April 26 of 2008---Joey proposed to me!!!

Yes we had been talking about getting married a lot, but he completely surprised me with how & when he did it!

It was a night I will never forget!

We did not have a certain day that we wanted to get married, it just so happened that the hall and the church were both open on November 1st, so that was the day we chose!

November 1st, 2008

I became Mrs. Joseph Ross!

After 27 years of being GERK, I was now Melissa GERK Ross!

For 6 months I planned and planned for this exciting day & it all came together to be a perfect day for us! I think the most memorable part of the day for me was definitely the church part, which is funny because it was the part I was the most nervous about! But I loved walking down the isle with my dad, I felt so incredibly special! Then seeing Joey's face when he saw me for the first time, still brings tears to my eyes! It was such a special moment! I feel so incredibly blessed to have experienced this and that I get to share the rest of my life with my soul mate!

Our 1st year of marriage has been filled with adventure

AND

I can only hope that we have many many more adventures together!