Meet the Herrolds
“I knew when I met you an adventure was going to happen.”
― A.A. Milne
To many of you I’m positive we need no introduction, but with great anticipation we approach the beginning of a new chapter. Two years can seem short when spoken about in passing, but in hindsight, with a shift in perspective, it can equate to 14 dog years or 26 goldfish years. So much can happen in a short amount of time as we have all seen with the worldwide pandemic. From illness, to graduation, a knee surgery, a positive pregnancy test, three moves, and a proposal, I’d say we have ebbed and flowed our way to our happiest place yet.
With a familial connection that long preface any mention of COVID-19 or Chapman University the intertwining of life’s winding paths would have been most certainly impossible if any one small decision were made inversely. But with all the thumbtacks and red string in the world, life wove the perfect storyline to lead us to this day. Emma and I met through a mixture of tragedy and genuine friendship that over time culminated in a show of kindness and understanding that would set the foundation for our relationship today.
I didn’t make it easy for a young woman from Morgan Hill, despite her agricultural background nothing prepares you for making the most of camping with no facilities in the middle of nowhere. Needless to say we became close very fast and seeing her willingness to adventure with me and reel me in when I get too ambitious lead me to believe she would be my perfect match. With the pandemic still in full effect one on one time wasn’t in short supply and it felt like we skipped over all of the chutes and hit all of the ladders in our journey of getting close.
Fast forward to the morning of January 12th, 2022 and we are in the throws of moving out of my bachelor pad at The Brewery in downtown Los Angeles. The day is welcomed by a phone call to the movers to confirm the details of the additional help needed to pack the “heavy stuff”. We were living with our good friend Zoe as a temporary stay over before our northern migration to Aptos, CA. As I am mid-sentence with the mover on the other end of the phone I see a teary eyed Emma emerge from the bathroom. “Hang up” she says with a major sense of urgency and repetition. With a hint of what was about to unfold as I bought the pregnancy tests just a few days before, I knew I could wrap up the call and be fully present for the revelation. Displaying the universal give me a minute hand gesture, Emma kept her cool. The call ended and just like that our lives changed forever. With some serious consideration and conversation about bucking societies order of operations we knew what we both wanted and jumped in head first into a life together forever.
Some may think in order to solidify a bond with somebody that marriage is the ultimate commitment but in todays culture of drive through weddings and drawn out divorces, that notion seems fleeting. I guess some may argue that the position of parenthood could also be evaded but reflecting on long conversations with Emma neither one of us take parenthood lightly. In fact, so many conversations were had regarding parenting and our future as joint parents, that I had to candidly express that Emma shelve the topic as my concerns with financial preparedness were causing me great angst. But sometimes life deals you the hand you need, not the one you’re necessarily prepared for.
If there is anything I have learned in the past five years is that nothing prepares you for something like doing it. With a lifetime of undiagnosed ADHD behind me, procrastination until the perfect moment was long my motus operandi but over time we are all capable of learning that there is another way. Learning to accept the passing of both of my parents within a years span has allowed me to stay nimble but stable, to stay open but protected, and to ultimately be receptive of different perspectives that may be different from my own. The addition of Emma, and soon to be our baby Joy, to my life is emboldened me to push life’s limits all the while holding a safe open place of priority for family and friends. This balance is the approach Emma and I have sworn, to ourselves and to each other, in which to raise this beautiful bundle of Joy in.
Our little baby girl is merely days away from joining us in the magical, chaotic, and ultimate determine your own adventure world we live in and we find ourselves sitting around killing time tackling household projects and doing copious amounts of laundry. With friends from our birthing class having their babies we are growing more and more eager to feel the soft warm touch of our babies skin against our own. Those first few moments are already carving a permanent irrevocable place in the deepest corners of our hearts. The only constant with each and every day that passes is when my eyes meet Emma’s and we say to each other, “I cant wait to see our little baby Joy”.
We are patiently awaiting the sound of your first heart warming cry and we promise you are in good hands. Love you baby Joy!
With all our love,
The Herrolds