Who knew you could find love just by looking out the back door
- Lindsey Hart
- Jul 23, 2018
- 3 min read
It all started with a race car - well, a race truck more specifically. The Harts moved in to our neighborhood in 2006. The instant we first heard the truck running, my brother & father stood up from the kitchen table and ran out the door! I remember Brandon laughing and saying that when Mike (my now FIL) stepped out from the garage to see who was there, he thought to himself 'oh man, thats a big dude'. Side note: Mike was a professional bodybuilder! Mike & Colton anticipated a complaint when they walked up through the backyards, but to their surprise this was the beginning of a lifelong friendship between two families. For those of you that know either one of our families, this should be no surprise - a story involving a Hart and a Whitfield started with a race car/truck.
The boys trained together in the Hart's gym & worked on many projects together in the garage: Jeff's '68 Chevelle, Colton's Camaro, & my dear Papa's '23 T-Bucket to name a few. Our families shared a love for boating and both were members of the Ski Klub of Decatur Illinois. Colton, Brandon, and I all learned to barefoot waterski together. PSA: My attempt was not so successful. Colton actually pulled me out of the water when I did four-ish front flips before even touching the water. If you haven't seen my epic barefoot crash video, you are missing out! Our families continued to stay close over the years through our many shared passions even when the Hart family moved - lucky for us, they were right down the road from my grandparents home.
It was evident to everyone, except me, that Colton was in love with me. The timing was never right, and not-to-mention, he was my brothers best friend! I went away to college, then Colton joined the service, then I was dating someone, and then he was dating someone, but we were always close friends. Colton's sister, Mariah, even cared for our dear Papa Whitfield (and Haans, too) in his last months. Colton was my brother's Best Man in his wedding. He ended up being deployed in Turkey during this time and surprised everyone with a virtual speech at the reception. Before the wedding, I was carrying Colton around, via FaceTime, so he could be a part of the event. It was at this point that my best friend, Emily, noted that I started talking about him a lot more. She claims that she brought up the idea of dating him almost monthly after this point! After many long-distance FaceTimes, calls, time spent together as friends, and not-so-subtle hints from family/friends, we finally made it official in June 2017.
After my first trip to visit Colton in July 2017, I changed my plans to move to Georgia where Colton is stationed in the Air Force. We started dating June 2017, Colton bought the ring in July 2017, and proposed on August, 21 2017 (fun fact: the day of the solar eclipse) in Lakeland, GA. In October 2017, Colton moved a boat-full of my belongings, with our newly purchased '97 Mastercraft ski boat, to Georgia.
Colton's father, Mike, said he could pin-point the day nine years ago where he stated to his wife, Angie, that we would be married one day - the day the Hart's put their pool in. Angie said it best, "I remember when Colton met Lindsey 11 years ago, he said I'm going to marry her one day. Who knew you could find love just by literally looking out your back door".
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