15th Wedding Anniversary

Yesterday was our 15th wedding anniversary.  It is really hard to believe that 15 years have passed since Kevin and I made our vows to one another in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

  We were able to sneak off to lunch together.  In this picture, Kevin is strategically placed to conceal Daniel, who came along.  He slept through lunch as he sleeps through many things!

  Kevin took off the afternoon so we got some more time together.  We also both got naps, though mine was shorter than I liked what with one thing and another. But any nap is a good nap these days!

  Kevin told me of a rather bizarre comment from a coworker.  Kevin told this woman that we were celebrating our 15th anniversary, and she responded with, "Well, it's never too late to get divorced!"

  That ranks up there in terms of non enthusiastic comments, but we used it as a springboard for a good conversation at lunch.  She is of course right -- many people divorce after 15 years of marriage.  The big point for us is that we need to keep working on our marriage. Like most families in our country, we are super busy. I don't work full time so we aren't dealing with the whole "2 couple, 2 full time job" challenge, but we have a large family and they require a great deal of energy and commitment. And we homeschool as well, which takes significant time, money, and energy as well.

  It has been said that the best thing a father can do for his children is to love his wife.  I actually disagree with that; I would say the best thing a father can do for his children is to love the Lord most of all, and his wife second.  But still, the point is that our children thrive when our marriage is strong and healthy.  It is tempting at times to let the marriage "slide" and assume we'll be Ok if we don't spend time together.  And sometimes (like after we have a baby) we are in survival mode and we don't spend as much time together. But as Kevin said, we need to get back to "normal" as soon as possible, with normal being a deliberate choice to make time for one another frequently.

  Last year, we had a regular sitter on Saturday  nights and went out on a date most Saturdays. We have a new sitter lined up for later this year, and we're excited.  Tomorrow night we will have our first date since Daniel was born.  Well, I should say, our first date where we don't bring him along as we've had several lunch dates. I've been pumping milk and introducing him to a bottle so he can manage without me for a few hours.

Not all couples want to get away from the kids for a date and I'm not saying it is a necessity to "go on dates".  Not all couples can afford babysitters, for that matter!  But I do believe every couple should make their marriage a high priority.  We can't afford to let our marital relationship slide to the bottom of the priority heap.

 

  One very last thing -- it was CRAZY hot yesterday. First 100 degree day in a LONG time.