Happy New Year!

It's 2009! Can you believe it?

I have so many fun memories of New Year's past. From the year that Rebecca, Charlotte and I stayed up late and threw confetti all over the playroom. To the time my sisters came to my apartment and we littered the yard of the apartment complex with new year's decorations. To the several new years' that were spent at the Delt house in LaGrange. But, my favorite new year's was 2006.

It was the first time I'd spent New Year's celebrating it right. My good friends, Philip and Carl and I went to Atlanta and went to an awesome party at the Hyatt. It was formal so we had to dress up and one of my favorite bands, Zac Brown Band, was playing. It was so much fun to stay in downtown Atlanta and to be celebrating the New Year with some of my favorite people. I'd spent much of 2005 single, trying to focus on my career and myself. I had wanted to truly experience being single and dating before I settled down, but I was beginning to get a little lonely. Just before midnight, I'd received a phone call and stepped out onto the balcony to take it. There were lots of people around and I felt sure that my group of friends were just inside the doors. All of a sudden, everyone around me started counting down. I rushed inside and realized that my friends were nowhere to be found. So, as the clock struck midnight, I sat drunk and alone wondering if this was what my year had in store for me.

Ha!

The next weekend, Zac Brown was actually playing in Newnan. One of my friends had asked me if I cared about going to see him, but to be honest, I was partied out. I really wasn't in the mood, but she insisted that I go. So, I went without putting too much interest in what I was wearing or how I looked. I was surprised at how many people were there. The parking lot was full and there were lots of people I knew from high school milling around inside and out. We'd gone inside and gotten a fairly good table where we could see the band playing, but I realized that I had left my cell phone in my car. So, begrudgingly I headed back out into the parking lot to get my phone. When I was coming back inside, there were a group of guys standing by the front door. I recognized them from high school, but didn't know them well enough to speak. One of them, however, stopped me and said, "Hey - how do I know you?" And I said, "you should know me, Jason Dewberry, I'm Sara Perkins. We went to school together." He nodded and sort of laughed a little. I went on inside and couldn't believe that he'd actually talked to me. I thought he was so cute and said to my friend, " you won't believe who just stopped me...." Later that evening, because we had such a good table, his group of friends came and sat with us. I knew some of his friends better than others, so it wasn't strange for them to ask to sit with us. Jason ended up sitting next to me. I remember that he was sitting to my left and another one of his friends was sitting to my right and there was a man sitting behind me that had already offered to buy me a drink or two. But, I just remember being drawn to Jason. He was so handsome and funny and seemed to really be interested in me! After my weekend in Atlanta, this was certainly refreshing. We danced a little (even though he was recovering from a broken ankle) and I remember drowning in his smell. He gave me goosebumps by just brushing his hand against my arm. We talked about people dating and I remember him saying, "everybody needs a girlfriend to keep them in line." I felt like I'd known him forever. Our friends call him "Dewberry" and at one point, I said, "Dewberry...." to him, he quickly stopped me and said, "I'd rather you just call me Jason." Thinking back on this night and our first few months together makes me blush, still. I am so in love with this man and truly believe that God sent him to me. We met 3 years ago on January 6th. So, even though I spent that New Year's sad and depressed and lonely - 2006 turned out to be a really good year. 2007 we finished our house and moved in and 2008 our baby boy was born. I can't WAIT to see what 2009 has in store.....