ANNIVERSARY: NINE YEARS MARRIED

Nine years.  3,285 days.  78,840 hours.  4,730,400 minutes.  On one hand I do completely feel as if we have been married for 4.7 million minutes, and on the other hand, I wonder how it happened.  How did nine years pass so quickly?  What were we doing with those minutes?

From here -


(for more of our wedding pictures, click here)

To here -

(from our most recent trip to Disney in Feb)

Nine years went in a blink, and I am so grateful for all of the time I've had with John.  For me, he's the best husband I could imagine, and he's an outstanding father.  Doing life with him is such a privilege, and I do not take the time we have together for granted.  I think when you lose a loved one like I did 11 years ago with my dad, it makes you more thankful for the time you have with people you love.  It's all a gift.

Marriage is really a great adventure.  I heard someone say once that when you get married, it helps to reveal how selfish you really are.  (The saying continues that having children reveals how angry you really are, which is another story entirely.)  Our marriage has definitely shed light on the dark places inside of me that no one else outside of John ever has to deal with.  We get the good, the bad and the ugly with our spouses, and walking the hard roads is challenging, to say the least.  Sometimes it is the sick to your stomach, pulse-pounding, shaking hands kind of challenging.

But it is worth it!  It is worth the work.  It is worth the effort.  It is worth the prayers.  Because the joys outweigh the sorrows and having John as my partner in life is one of God's greatest gifts to me.  God knew we needed one another to do life well.  There are times when we laugh, and I think that life could not be any better.  John is my greatest encourager, and he challenges me in the very best ways to think about life differently.  He shows me more of Jesus, and for that, I am eternally grateful.

So - here's to nine years.  We've certainly managed to pack a lot of life into them.  I can't wait to see what the next nine years hold, because though there will certainly be hard times, there will be such good times too.  And lots of laughter.  I'm glad to be doing life with my favorite person in the world, JPS.

Past Anniversary Posts:
{2011} {2012} {2013}