Happy Anniversary DH!

From 11/29/12:

Ten years ago, I was a ball full of nerves and excitement as we finished up the final touches at the church and prepared for the rehearsal dinner for our wedding. I was spending my last day as PBR, and I was so excited at the lifetime God had ahead of me. I was SOOO young, a bit naive I'm sure, but completely confident that this was God's plan for my life. People would ask me why I was getting married so young when there was so much life yet to be experienced. (I was just 20.) My response became something along these lines: "I believe God has a great plan for each of our lives, but I believe He can accomplish His will for my life more fully by placing me with this amazing man to be my spiritual leader, partner in ministry, and partner in life." I have thought of that statement many times and still cling to its truth-over and over again I have seen how God has drawn Michael and I closer together as a couple to be able to accomplish His will in a much greater sense than we ever could have done on our own. Don't get me wrong-this has nothing to do with us! It's all about what God has chosen to do through us, and we are so humbled, grateful, and blessed by his plan and His path for our family!

Five years ago, we celebrated 5 years of marriage by going out to dinner...with our newborn daughter. And now that another 5 years has passed, God has blessed us with another child! (I will be honest and say I hope He will bless us with another before the next 5 years rolls around tho;-) to celebrate our "diamond anniversary" we took a getaway to the Gaylord. Was it nice to be able to sleep undisturbed throughout the night? Yes! Was it nice to go out to dinner and it be just the two of us? Yes! Is it nice to just follow our own schedule of what we want to do? Yes! (Although during these times of being without the kids, we talk about them constantly!) But the reason these rare times are enjoyed so much is because of the blessing we have been given of being parents. DH and I have done a LOT of traveling since we were married, having lived so far away from most of our family for so long, but we've always enjoyed our times in the car together to just be able to visit and laugh and dream with one another. It's funny to see how our conversations are now, ten years into our marriage. We weren't just visiting and laughing and dreaming with one another about one another on this trip. Instead, we were talking about our kids, laughing at the silly things they say and do and the ways they make us smile, and dreaming of what God will have them be in their lives. With each thing that we see on our getaway, I find myself saying, "Wouldn't Lucy love this?" Or "I wonder what Gabriel's reaction to this would be?"

All of that being said, I'm just filled with so much thankfulness today that God has placed me on this path for my life as a traveler alongside such an amazing man I get to call my DH.

Happy "diamond" anniversary to the love of my life!!