blessed.

It is Wednesday, and it is my day off. This is my official "i am going to be focused and do TONS of homework" day but life never seems to work like that. Whether it is by choice, I cannot divulge.

Today I made lunch and took it to my wonderful husband at work. It was fun. On the menu: tuna salad (yum!) on lightly toasted rye bread (yuck!) with fresh cantaloupe, some scrumptious cheddar cheese, and a few cheetos. I realized after everything was pack that it was all orange with the exception of the sandwich itself. Quickly, I tried to come up with an orange alternative but happily settled with what was already made.

Our visit was nice. The picnic table was already occupied so we drove down the block and found a big shade tree to sit under. We talked and laughed through his much-too-short lunch break. All I could think about was how lucky I was to be sharing my life with this guy. Sure, he has his faults but I have mine to balance those out. Besides, I don't think I could handle being married to someone who didn't make me nuts every now and again. ;)

As I dropped him off, he told me to listen to a song because it was about me. All I could do was smile. Not because I didn't have anything to say. Rather, because I didn't know how to say everything I was feeling. Given the lyrics, this was just one more demonstration of how much he loves me.

On my way home I listened to the sweet words and fought back tears. In that moment (and this moment now), my heart was so full. So full of love and thanks. Thanks that I have the opportunity to live my life with this nutty, nutty goon. Thanks that we get to raise a family together. Thanks that he loves me and supports my dreams. Thanks that he encourages me to be the very best I can be every single day. Thanks that he tells me "how it is" despite the (not so scary) glares I may or may not offer.

I went on to think about how this summer will mark four years since I moved away from home and started this life in Sonoma County. I remembered thinking knowing that I would get married during this move. I also remembered a whole slough of feelings I experienced between now and then: fear, excitement, relief, frustration, even pure joy. Fear of the unknown. Excited of the possibilities. Frustration that things weren't happening the way I'd like or at the rate I'd prefer. Pure joy that my dreams were becoming reality.

I cannot promise to be perfect, to never upset him or to always keep the kitchen clean. However, I can promise that I will always love him, that I will always scratch his back, be his ally and friend, put band-aids on his boo-boo's and be the very best mother to his children that I can be.

two peas in a pod.

it is official. dan and i are hooked...to each other! as a sign of our commitment we have taken the big leap and changed my personal blog (albeit, tiny personal blog) and made it our official "we are married and cool so we are gonna have a blog" blog. it is our goal (ok, my goal) to post something twice a month but we will definitely need encouragement. ha ha ha.

let us start by introducing our married selves.

dan: tall, dark, and handsome. rather, taller than me, darker than me, and definitely handsomer than me. he's an uber nerd and i love him for it. he loves animals and would have one of everything if i let him. smart and witty, he teaches me something new every day. he plays with his ears when he's thinking, tired, bored or just plum breathing. he has a beard that puts other beards to shame. kind and compassionate, he is possibly one of the most caring people i know. he's got a soft side that he hates to show and if it were up to him, the whole world would think he were invincible. he loves his nephews and talks about them constantly. he is a complex individual yet so simple at the same time. he makes me laugh harder than i've ever laughed before and smile bigger than i ever thought possible. he sees straight through me without effort and possibly knows me better than i know myself. he is my best friend and i love him. -jackie

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Jackie is, well, Jackie. If you know her you know that she is beyond adorable, and has a great sense of humor. I think her realism and lame jokes are what first drew me to her. She was a real person with me, never faking it, never pretending, never just telling me what I wanted to hear. If only that would've continued... ;) But really, I couldn't ask for someone that is more perfect for me. She doesn't always realize it, but she is AMAZING! She loves me just the way I am, but still manages to encourage me to be better. I find myself wanting to be better just so I can keep up with her.

And then there's her patience. ...yeah. If you know our story you know, as the scriptures would put it, how long-suffering she is. Honestly, I don't know if there is a better term for it than that. The hell I put this girl through! My goodness. I am just glad that she waited and that she said yes when I finally put myself together. I can't wait for the next ETERNITY! YEAH!! Oh, and don't count on me posting on here all that often - most of the updates will be from her. I'll be busy playing Assassin's Creed ;) -Dan