"It's not the most attractive quality to go on a date with someone who is venting about their ex the whole time. And 5 years ago, that was me. I was on every dating site possible, but couldn't understand why no one ever asked me out for a 2nd or 3rd date. In hindsight, it's crystal clear. I was angry and bitter about love. I had recently walked out on the father of my 2 children after a 9 year relationship. He was verbally abusive towards me, often telling me I was fat, ugly, & stupid. His anger continued to escalate until one day he punched a hole in the wall. I realized it was only a matter of time before his abuse turned physical, and I left. As a single mother with 2 kids, I wasn't sure who would want to date me. My ex left me feeling broken and worthless. After multiple failed attempts at online dating, I decided to take a break from dating altogether. I know it sounds cliché, but I needed to find happiness from within me, instead of looking for it in another person. I focused on becoming the kind of person that MY right kind of person would want to be with. 2 years later, I got back into the online dating game and found my Guy... no seriously, his name is Guy. Although I'm not exactly sure how I got any matches with my embarrassing profile bio that stated things like "not looking for a fling, "looking to make a family" "mom of 2 kids." (Not necessarily what men on dating apps are looking for). When I came across Guy's profile, most of his photos were kind of a train wreck, but there was one of him hugging his son that made me want to reach out. I realized early on that Guy was different. He's funny, genuine, and easy to love. But then again, I became someone different. We've now been together for 3 years and just got married this summer. Guy's son is wonderful and and our children love each other so much. My kids like to say, "we don't use the word step, he is our brother." My son and Guy's son are only a month apart. They even share a birthday party together. Being a blended family and an interracial couple hasn't come without it's challenges, but we hope that in the end, our children will be stronger and more open-minded individuals because of it."

A post shared by The Way We Met (@thewaywemet) on Aug 14, 2017 at 3:55pm PDT