6 years. 6 happy, blessed, adventurous, stretching, learning, overwhelming, sweet years of marriage. On the one hand it feels like I've known and been with James forever. On the other hand it feels like 6 years has flown by and only just yesterday we were going on our first date.
This anniversary I've been reflecting a lot on how much I've learned and grown in our marriage. James himself and my marriage to James continually helps me to be a better person. I witness grace first hand every single day for my quirks and downfalls--being talkative, talking too much before I think, my tone, my tendency to overplan, my anxiety, my controlling nature, etc, etc, etc. By some miracle James endures these every day and still loves me. And not only that he helps and supports me through these areas for growth. He is so patient, consistent, and leaves so much room for my authenticity. James complements me in so many ways and I observe and learn from him. I've grown leaps and bounds in showing respect for my husband, processing before I speak, working on my tone (but not always successfully), being mindful and empathetic of where James is and what he needs--when and how it's best to communicate or work on plans, partnering together on parenting, and identifying James' love languages and providing for those. I see God molding me and working on my heart in so many ways through our marriage and through James' service and love to me. Yes I would admit that marriage is hard--it's "raw, see me at my worst, life is overwhelming and you still have to love me" hard. But man so so so worth it and so life giving and so rich. I wouldn't want to be on this journey with any other person in the whole world. I love you so much, James.
On a lighter side note, James and I have observed the traditional wedding gifts in all our years of marriage so far. Here's a record of what we've given:
1st: Paper
Wrote letters to each other
2nd: Cotton
New sheets and pillows
3rd: Leather
Black leather purse for Megs
Leather slippers for James
4th: Flowers/fruit
Flowers and hanging baskets for the yard
5th: Wood
Megs put together a care package in a wood box for our trip to Victoria
James took me to Butchart Gardens on our trip to Victoria
6th: Candy
Assortment of candy and chocolate given to each other
Next year is Wool....hmmmm gonna have to start thinking on that one. Any creative ideas?
You should definitely give each other a live sheep!
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