Thirteen years of being married.
It feels like forever, but it also seems like the blink of an eye, all at the same time. At this point, we’ve spent more than a third of our lives together. We’ve created core memories and overcome all types of hardship. He’s stood by me through my own struggles, helped me to heal, and pushed me to come back stronger than before.
Even through all the tough stuff, he’s still my best friend.
I’ve been there watching him refine his skills as a software developer, become a leader in the industry, and this year, change to a new job position that he truly loves. I love having a front-row seat to watching all his growth, both professionally and spiritually.
It seems like we were just babies when we decided to marry each other compared to where we are now. I’m proud of how far we’ve come.
I’m excited for everything we hope for in the future: watching our kids grow up, maybe moving to a place where we can have land and animals, and hopefully exploring Europe.
It feels like we’re in this middle space, where our oldest kids are nearly pre-teens, but we still have babies at home. We’re not the youngest, but we don’t feel “middle-aged” by any means, either. We know who we are, for the most part, but we’re still working together on refining our strengths.
I never could have imagined that our family would consist of the five most amazing little ladies and the sweetest baby boy. They’ve brought us so much joy, so much growth, and honestly, a completely different (read: better) life than I had ever expected. They’ve stretched our energy levels, our patience, and our capacity to love more than we knew possible.
I sometimes think I would change almost every stylistic aspect of our wedding- I had no idea what I even liked back then. Still, I realize that I was focused on the most important parts- I’d never change my groom or the fact that we were privileged to be married inside the temple. I may not have known much, but I knew we were meant to be together, and following the gospel was the most critical element of our relationship.
Nothing happens without hard work, but today, I don’t take having a supportive, devoted partner for granted.
Happy 13th Anniversary, Bestie. I love you.
So much has changed since those early days of marriage that our “old life” would seem almost unrecognizable now. We might not get as many date nights out, our home is most certainly a whole lot louder and messier, and it seems like we’re juggling more tasks than we ever have. I wouldn’t trade any of it.
Thanks for keeping me laughing, Buddy. That’s the best gift of all.
As the girls would say, “Happy Birthday to our family!”
I look back on that day and can’t help feeling like we were just babies getting married. At 21, we were definitely young, but we felt strongly that we were meant to be together. Surely, some people thought we were crazy for getting married so fast (and maybe we were a little), but we followed our hearts, put in the work, and we’ve truly had a wonderful decade, full of so many memories and so much growth.
Michael is probably the most patient, kind, and caring man I’ve ever met. He’s stood by me while I’ve figured out who I am. He’s loved me even when I didn’t love myself.
He’s watched our daughters come into the world, and hearing him cheer me on as I labored is something I’ll never forget. He’s at every finish line of every single one of my races, with an armful of our babies, ready to take pictures and then listen to me talk about running for hours on end because he knows how important it is to me. He sacrifices so much for me and the girls, and even though this whole motherhood thing can be really hard, he definitely does the best he can to make it easier for me.
After ice cream, Michael surprised me again by bringing me back to the very place where we both realized we’d marry each other. We sat under the same little tree (well, we at least tried to pick the same one) as nearly 5 years ago now and just talked.