Jessa (Duggar) Seewald Details Her Love Story With Husband Ben in Adorable Open Letter

In an open letter on the Seewald family blog, Jessa (Duggar) Seewald is opening up about her sweet love story with husband, Ben and sharing with fans what it felt like the first time she laid eyes on him.

In the letter titled, “Happy Birthday Ben!” Seewald details the progression of the couple’s relationship and shares how God brought the two together.

“When first I laid eyes on you, a dapper [17-year-old] young man, I never could’ve dreamt of what the future held for us. It was 10:15 a.m. on a Sunday morning. I was late for church as I came scurrying through the door with a couple of siblings in tow. In the midst of this commotion, I spotted you, the ‘new guy,’ and our eyes met for a second,” she wrote.

“During the service, I looked over in your direction a few times. You’d grown a handsome goatee that yielded a more aged look, and I was convinced you were at least in your early 20’s! Our first conversation was slightly awkward because we both wanted to say ‘Hey!’ but we were a bit nervous. You tried to break the ice. ‘Is that an iPhone?’ you questioned, pointing at the device I was fumbling around in my hands.”

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Seewald says that after their initial meeting, she “had no clue” if she’d ever see him again. But luckily three weeks later, Ben showed up at church and was invited over to her family’s home for the afternoon.

She goes on to write that Ben was finishing his studies at community college and was thinking about transferring to the University of Arkansas, forcing Seewald to think that the two were completely over.

“I convinced myself that that was it, and refused to think that you had anything else in mind, but my sisters started to tease me about you,” she continued. But at the time, she questioned if he was even interested in her because of their two-and-a-half-year age gap.

“Surely he wouldn’t be interested in an older gal, I reasoned. He’s a teenager, and I’m already twenty!” she thought at the time. “But on the other hand, it seemed that you already knew I was older and were trying to wait as long as possible to let me in on that fact. Could this mean that he does, in fact, like me, and is trying to avoid being written off because of his age? Over those next few months, we talked a lot during your visits. And the more we talked, the more I started to fall for you.”

Seewald goes on to explain that the couple talked about their favorite books, preachers and much more. She reveals that Ben bought her a copy of Charles Spurgeon’s Morning and Evening devotional.

It was then that she outlines how she started to realize how much she missed him when he left.

“Sometimes I felt like my heart was running after you too quickly. I always wanted to have my phone on me so I could read your texts the second they came in, but then I found myself thinking, maybe I should wait a couple of hours to text him back so he doesn’t think I’m crazy about him. But I was crazy about you! You’d become my best friend,” she wrote.

As she goes on, she reveals that’s when it happened — that he told her he loved her.

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“I cried,” she wrote despite disclosing she is not a super emotional person.

Seewald and Ben tied the knot in 2015, and within two years welcomed two children into their family: sons Spurgeon Elliot, 1, and Henry Wilberforce, 3 months.

The mother of two writes: “When I think about what you mean to me, it’s hard to put into words. You’re one of a kind. You’re a gem. You’ve influenced my life in ways you probably don’t even know, and have helped me to be a more well-rounded person.”

While she continues that there’s so much more she could say about Ben, she concludes her letter simply and most sweetly: “I know that I married up.”

Counting On returns June 12 at 9 p.m. EST on TLC. Check your local listings.

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