A 6-year-old little girl named Lexi couldn’t hold back her tears last month during her parent’s wedding in Iowa. Jenni and Timmy Gibson began dating at 16, became teen parents at the age of 17 and now after ten years, they were finally exchanging vows.
“As the years went by, growing older and adding the stress of adult life made things get rocky between Timmy and me. We decided it was best if we separated and find ourselves as adults. We spent all of our teenage years together and with having a child at such a young age, we never really experienced anything else besides each other. We always remained very civil to each other. Sure, we had our fights and bickering, but there was never a time we didn’t get along for the kids. We never wanted them to have a childhood they had to recover from. Most children’s problems stem from what is happing at home so we tried to keep it as professional as possible when it came to our children.”
After a few months of being separated I became pregnant with my third child. This time it was a boy with another person who honestly didn’t care to be a part of his life. Being the amazing human Timmy is, he was there for me wiping my tears as I cried to know I was bringing a life into the world and that the man who fathered him couldn’t care less. It was one of the scariest moments of my life. I never had to experience this situation previously because Timmy was always there for the girls without a doubt. He never left our sides. Timmy saw how scared I was and how emotional I had become about it and he was there to lift my spirits to let me know everything would be ok. That OUR son would have a family that loves him and we’ll never treat him differently! To hear him say OUR son that day, in that moment, made me feel all the feelings I had been missing for so long. To know Timmy was willing to accept my son as his and raise him as his own without a second thought made me fall completely in love with him all over again. I knew watching him hold our son for the first time that this was the man God made for me! I feel like our son was the gift God gave us to bring us back together. He saw how hurt I was and said he couldn’t let me do this alone. He never left my side since that day!”
The ceremony on May 12th was the culmination of the pairs love story. “I heard whispers of everyone saying, ‘Look at Lexi, she’s crying!’ ” Jenni recalls to PEOPLE, adding that she spoke with the little girl afterward. “She said, ‘Everything was just so beautiful, mommy.’ She said that’s why she was crying; she was so happy for our wedding.”
Lexi has an 8-year-old sister, Riley and 2-year-old brother, Lincoln. In the photos taken of the sweet moment, Lexi can be seen with her friend and sister, receiving comfort from them as she sobs.
Jenni expressed to PEOPLE how the pictures touched her heart. “I was overwhelmed with emotions. I didn’t know it was that important to her. She felt so happy that day, so it made me feel like I made the best decision of our lives.”
Jenni and Timmy started dating ten years ago when they were just 16. Exchanging vows with her long-time love has finally made her feel at peace. The significance hasn’t been lost on her little ones.
“In their minds, a wedding means the people love each other,” she says. “With my kids, I think for them it meant we’ll never be a part because they see in movies and cartoons that the ending is always marriage and everyone is happy.”
When Jenni shared her story with Love What Matters, she called Lexi an “old soul.”
“That pure emotion on Lexi’s face is proof how important it was to her for her mommy and daddy to finally get married after all these years,” she wrote. “This was something well worth waiting for because I couldn’t imagine my wedding day without my children to share it with.”
Congratulations to this fantastic family!