Vows
Katie felt all eyes on her, and her wedding dress suddenly felt tight. Heat prickled up her neck and into her cheeks. Steadying herself, she glanced at the words she had written.
Then she searched the crowd until she found the woman’s face. With her eyes never leaving her husband’s ex, she asked her to stand. Then, she started to read.
Jeremy
Facebook/Katie H. Muss
April 17, 2013. The date was etched into Katie Hild’s mind. It was the day she had met Jeremy, and it was the day that her life had changed forever. The two had hit it off spectacularly, and even though they had just met, Katie felt her head spinning with the giddiness of new love.
She was blissfully unaware of the bombshell that Jeremy was about to drop on her.
Besotted
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Katie and Jeremy had a whirlwind romance, and he seemed perfect in every way. Katie felt like she was living a fairytale. Every time her phone pinged, her stomach would flutter in hopes that the message was from him, and if it wasn’t, her heart would plummet.
You see, Jeremy was quite a catch. Katie would soon find out that other women knew it, too.
Infatuation
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All Katie could fixate upon was Jeremy. When they weren’t together, she replayed every minute of their time together, carefully storing away every last detail. The way his lower eyelashes rested on his cheek while he checked his phone, the scent he wore — like walnut wood and honey.
But soon, her full heart would be shattered.
The Fall
Facebook/Katie H. Muss
Katie wondered how she had gotten to this point. She had been plucked from the dizzying height of her love for Jeremy, and then had fallen to one of the worst lows of her life.
She lay on her bed, and the despair engulfed her like a blanket. She had her phone in her hand and on the screen, the devastating message stared at her contemptuously.
The Message
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When Jeremy’s message made its way to Katie’s phone, she had heard the notification and rushed to read it. She re-read the words carefully, and then suddenly it had felt like her world stopped.
The message was a late-night confession from Jeremy, and he had been hiding something from her for the entire 6 weeks that they had been together.
Torn
Facebook/Katie Musser
Jeremy revealed to Katie that he had a child. When she had asked him how old the child was, he had replied that he had been born on April 28th. The date hit Katie like a sledgehammer as she tried to grasp what Jeremy was trying to tell her.
Katie envisioned the date again in her mind. Surely there was some sort of mistake?
A Decision
ABC News
The date on which Jeremy’s secret son, Landon, had been born was just 11 days after they had met. Katie’s heart filled with anger and disappointment. Jeremy had been lying to her for the entire duration of their relationship.
Why hadn’t he told her? And what else was he keeping from her? Could she trust anything he had ever said?
The Moment Of Truth
ABC News
Four years later and that was all behind her, even though it had been a devastating blow. She was standing at the altar with Jeremy and was preparing to recite her vows. She had planned this moment carefully for almost a year.
Now was finally the time to speak her mind. She started shaking as she picked the mother of Jeremy’s child out from the crowd, and asked her to stand up.
Going Off-Script
Facebook/Katie Musser
Katie started to recite her vows, and the onlookers were mesmerized by her words. “First, I want to thank you for accepting me as your friend and allowing me to be a part of Landon’s life…” she read.
Casey, Landon’s mom, was so moved by Katie’s heartfelt words that her eyes started to fill. Then Katie kneeled in front of Landon and continued her speech.
Jeremy’s Confession
Instagram/Katie Musser
When Katie had heard about Casey, just six weeks into her relationship with Jeremy, she had been filled with resentment. But, as the months went on, she softened. In a gesture of maturity and compassion, she started to reach out to Casey, and the two formed an unusual bond.
She even grew to love Landon as if he were her own.
Special Vows
Instagram/Katie Musser
Katie eventually felt so strongly about Landon and Casey that she decided to write a special piece in her vows to include them in her wedding ceremony. “I promise to be an amazing mother to your son. I will guide, teach and love him every single day. I promise to respect, work, listen and communicate together as co-parents. I will love you guys no matter what comes our way. We are one family, always…” Katie continued.
The guests were in complete awe.
Landon
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Katie then turned to her stepson.
“Landon, I love you more than you will ever know. I’ve had the privilege of knowing you since the beginning. I’ve loved watching you grow and I will for the rest of my life. I’m so happy that I now officially get to be your bonus mommy.”
A Surprising Speech
Instagram/Katie Musser
There wasn’t a dry eye at the ceremony, and Katie’s amazing message about co-parenting quickly went viral. The video of her heartfelt vows has since garnered over 2000,000 views — and strikes a chord with many.
“This was absolutely beautiful,” one woman wrote on Facebook, “Kudos to this wonderful and special family and as for the bride, she’s one of a kind!”
A Blossoming Friendship
Facebook/Katie H. Muss
“I wasn’t just going into a marriage with Jeremy and needed his trust and respect, but I needed Casey’s and Tyler’s, too. One thing I promised, was to be ONE family, always. I know without hesitation, we will never break that promise.”
Katie has shown that she has come a long way in four years, and was able to embrace her stepson, and more surprisingly, her husband’s ex as an important part of her family.
Embracing Co-Parenting
Facebook/Katie H. Muss
“I wasn’t just going into a marriage with Jeremy and needed his trust and respect, but I needed Casey’s and Tyler’s, too. One thing I promised, was to be ONE family, always. I know without hesitation, we will never break that promise.”
But things didn’t always go so smoothly between the two women: “The one thing we had in common though was Landon. Landon was and is the beat to our heart. The little guy who not only changed our routines and norms, but he changed us,” Katie explained.
One Big Family
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“So many stories, rumors, and judgment, but what would you expect? That’s all we ever saw. That’s the norm. You don’t like the ‘other person,’” she said.
Katie has shown that she has come a long way in four years, and was able to embrace her stepson, and more surprisingly, her husband’s ex as an important part of her family.