Being In Love

Chris and I celebrated our 11 year Anniversary Saturday. When I look back at the past 11 years, WOW is what comes to mind.

I have to say that I feel TREMENDOUSLY blessed to have found a man, who loves me for me, and who doesn't try to mold me into someone he wants me to be. He loves me, my quirks, my randomness, and even my noodling (ha ha--I'll tell y'all what that means another time....No, it's nothing bad!) I'm so blessed to have found a good Godly man, who leads me and our children in the way of the Lord.

I have to say that when we first got married, it was a rough start. We got married, then a year later (year and a half actually) we moved 1,400 miles away from our family, and everything that I had ever known. We moved, and then...It was just he and I, nobody else. There was nobody around to run to when things got bad, or when we had a fight (yes, we had those, LOL) It was just Chris and I and we learned to depend on each other. The first year living here was I have to say one of the hardest years of not only our marriage, but of my life. Times were tough...Chris worked long hours, and I was home all the time. I always tell Chris that I call that time in our marriage, my single married Mom phase. That's how it all felt. We went through some major things, but....BUT....God brought us through it!!

We learned that first year that we HAD to have God as the center of our marriage if it was ever going to work. We vowed to one another that one night that we would both focus on our marriage, and that we'd see it through God's eyes, and what a difference. If one thing I've learned in 11 years, is that without God in the middle of it all, nothing works. If we stray from putting God in the middle of our marriage, things are very rocky.

I love my husband so deeply and so passionately, that I want that for everyone else. I desire for people to have the same kind of relationship's with their spouses. I'm blessed beyond measure with my wonderful husband, and I try not to take him for granted. I praise the Lord for him daily, because I just love him so much!

I always tell him that I cannot imagine my life without him, and there is so much truth to that. I cannot imagine living life without the Love of my life. I tell him that I am sad that in Heaven we will no longer be married (then he tells me that I'm silly and I shouldn't feel like that, LOL) I just always want to be by him, and love him and care for him. I remember the day when I told him that I loved him Always & Forever, and I said I meant it, because it's true. I love him always now, and I'll love him forever, into eternity =)

I never realized growing up that I would find someone who would love me the way that Chris loves me. I grew up in a broken home, and my parents divorced when I was 3 weeks old. My thoughts for marriage were always broken. I think I viewed marriage as something that you could easily get out of if you just got tired of being in it, or if you just wanted to give up. I went into my marriage with a lot of baggage, and with a lot of uncertainty. I'm proud to say though, that I've learned to love, I've let go of the baggage, and I am married to the most wonderful man alive!! Somebody gave us a plaque when we got married and here is what it says (it couldn't be more fitting):

Marriage Takes Three

Marriage takes three to be complete;
it's not enough for two to meet.
They must be united in love
by love's Creator,
God above.
A marriage that follows God's plan
takes more than a woman and a man.
It needs a oneness
that can be
Only from Christ-
Marriage Takes Three