It certainly wasn't instant. Let me preface this with my husband asked me to marry him after 2 months of dating, and I laughed like a hyena. He was very attractive, and had beautiful eyes, but apparently he had a whole lot of crazy going on under the surface.

It took time. He included my son. Always saw us as a package deal, which is rare. Opened his world to me so I could really see him, his family, his values, and work ethic. Accepted my baggage (my son is not baggage, he's a blessing, but trust me, I have tons of heavy baggage that included a violent stalker ex-husband).

It took about a year, but one winter night, when there were flurries falling, we were just standing outside watching them. He looked down at me with such love in his eyes and said, "your hair is sparkling". Nothing profound or terribly romantic, but I fully realized in that moment he thought I was beautiful, and I felt beautiful. It was such a gift that I finally understood that no matter what drama or hardships I came with, he thought I was beautiful. He accepted all of me. I was just a little slow catching on.

We've been together for 22 years. Through brain surgery, heart surgery, financial pressures, and so much worse. All it took was a year, a little snow, and 22 years of hard work.