ten years.

Today we've reached double-digits.

Ten years of marriage!  

We've gone from nice tans and well-chiseled abs...

To...well, sort of pasty and our abs have gone taken a leave of absence for one reason or another.

But hey - at least we still travel, right?  

We have had lots of fun, both pre-kids and with kids!

We've been blessed with two smart and lively blondies...who give us challenges, of course.  

I look forward to this eleventh year, raising one more tiny baby with you, getting through more reno projects, Cormac's first year of kindergarten and all the new things for our smart + perceptive + sensitive kid,  and Finola's mood swings and BIG joyous personality that both delight us and wear us out.

I promise that someday I'll nag you less about the renovations.  Someday you'll come home and I'll have made a more creative meal than "chicken + rice + cheese" (AKA whatever I had left since somehow we've eaten everything fresh) or "I seriously cannot cook tonight so can you please get us takeout???" 

Someday I'll have more interesting things to say, besides "Oh my gosh Finola {-did the most hilarious thing in Target today!"} or {-made me want to cry in Target today."} 

Someday we'll spend an entire Saturday binge watching TV shows again, and go on late night walks, and take super romantic vacations, and it will be so very "adult" again.

But until that 'someday,' which I know will come much quicker than either of us want it to, please know this:

Ten years later I still love you dearly.  Our life is less simple, but no less lovely.  

Ten years later you are still the only man I would ever marry.

I pray for many, many more years with you.

Happy anniversary!

(PS : Your present is this blog post...and a baby!) 

a weird (but good) piece of dating advice...

I am pretty sure when giving unsolicited advice to my kids about how to choose a spouse (because I am positive they are going to be reallllllly interested in all I have to say on the subject) I will tell definitely tell them this:

Choose someone you love to travel with.

Travel compatibility probably won't make or break a marriage...but it can greatly enhance it.  This is especially true if you crave travel adventures, as I have my entire life thanks to a father who took us as to as many campsites and mountaintops and points-of-interest as he possibly could throughout our childhood.  Most travel-lovers will want to continue having adventures when they get married.  Thus, it is wise to enjoy going on adventures with that person you married to, otherwise you may develop one of three problems:

1. You want to travel with friends - or by yourself - all the time and that could make your spouse jealous or resentful of the time spent away from him/her.  
2. You travel with your spouse and you end up wanting to kill each other.
3. You don't travel.

Yikes.  None of those sound appealing - to me, at least.

Hubby and I learned when we were twenty and went on our first vacation together (Cancun) that we were pretty good travel partners.  Even though technically we were broken up at the time, we still had an awesome time together!

Thirteen years later, we have gone on a lot of trips - both elaborate/pricey and cheap/rustic - and never fail to have a great experience.  It wasn't something I was necessarily looking for in a life partner, but I feel blessed that it worked out this way.

Here is why we "work" as travel partners: 

• Neither of us love packing in a ton of activities.  Yeah, we've scuba'd and snorkeled and visited ruins.  We've both summited mountain peaks and whitewater rafted and hiked the Grand Canyon...but our best memories of travel together are of long conversations over lots of drinks and eating pizza in our hotel room.  We'll do the activities -- but given the choice we'd both pick a lazy and relaxing time together.  Yep, we are lazy, lazy people on vacations (not in real life) who like to eat and drink and read books and basically lay there.  A lot.
• We both like to camp (in tents) and our best travel stories do not involve fancy places.  (In fact, the best memory we both have is always the night we sat at a hotel bar drinking and playing cards all night.)  We both like to do ridiculous things like order pizza to eat in our hotel room or go out to a movie even if we are in an exotic locale.
• We looooooove long road trips together.   Both like to be in the driver's seat (but yes, we do complain about each other's driving - "Just go back to sleep!" or "Then you drive!" - both said usually by me when my driving abilities are questioned) and are okay plowing through long trips overnight, enjoy gas station snacks, rest area exploration, and occasionally sleeping in the back of our vehicle to save cash.
• We are okay spending time alone or apart during vacations.  I escape to the gym on a regular basis, or to run, and he sometimes needs to take REALLY long naps.  This "alone time" is necessary for both of us and makes the trip even better in the end.
• We will indulge each other in the things the other likes to do.  For example, I have driven to many a sporting event to watch Kentucky play basketball (I am not very into sports.)   For his part, Paul will stop wherever I want to stop with no complaint - book stores, coffee shops (he doesn't drink coffee) and weird roadside flea markets.

All that being said - we had a great time relaxing (being lazy) in Mexico last week.  The first "romantic warm weather getaway" we have had since getting married that I was not pregnant during!  Travel notes and more pics to come!

mexico adventuring - then and now!

Who do you most love to travel with?

What weird piece of advice will you give to your kiddos about marriage/dating?

lucky number seven

Seven years married.
To this smart, logical, non-judgmental, fair, and handsome man - complete with dimples and superhero chin.

When I was a little girl I sit on a fence on our farm, staring up at the stars, praying for a romance someday -- a romance for the ages.  My love would be handsome, and smart, and successful, and he'd put up with all my crazy, and we would do all kinds of exciting things.  And on and on.  It would be magical.

Yes, perhaps I watched too many rom-coms and Rogers+Hammerstein musicals as a child.

Be that as it may, in my mind, my prayer was answered.

There were quite a few hiccups on the way to marriage -- but there are in the movies, too, right?  Oh, and the actual marriage has had plenty of fights and moments of drama and mistakes made.  I mean, sweet pictures and Disney movies aside -- let's just be real.  Marriage is complicated and raw and hard.

But I think that is part of what makes it so phenomenally good.

To read our "love story" click here (Start at #5 Meeting Future Hubby!)

To see a glimpse of the past thirteen years (eek!) watch this slideshow -- because I am nerdy and love seeing images set to good music...

I couldn't feel more lucky- and blessed - to have had seven years with this man.  Year seven has us in the middle of maybe one of the more challenging parts of parenting/marriage - the tiny baby/toddler stage.  Getting sleep, finding time and energy for romance, and really getting anything done besides him going to work and me raising the kiddos full-time.

So happy to be going through it all with such a great man, who loves me and appreciates me like none other.  Who always makes me feel like I am the most beautiful person in the world, inside and out.
And keeps it light...when I am often so serious...

I love you, babe.  

Happy seven years.