...and I have yet to celebrate it!
On this day, exactly six years ago, I married my youth minister. :D
That's what he was when I first met him, anyway!
Technically, we spent most of the day apart--Chris and Luke were camping with our church's children's ministry and I had the other two kids on layover at Grandma's house. Once we were finally all home, we were all home and that meant unpacking, playing Lego's with Luke, watching Sissy and Adam jump on the bed, and generally being exhausted. So there was not much anniversaring going on today. Even now that the kids are in bed, Chris has fallen asleep on the couch (almost an hour ago now) and I'm...well, I'm blogging or you wouldn't have anything to read!
Six years ago, Chris and I were silly in love...probably to the point that we made people sick. He was sweet and he was funny and our worlds revolved around each other. Since then, I've grown up a lot (I think...) and I have learned over and over again that neither love nor marriage will survive based solely on our feelings for each other. My husband is Godly, he is responsible, he is loving, he makes time for us, he is involved with our children, he lets me be all weird like I know I am, and he is even still goofy...a lot goofy. Because I know each of these things--and so many more--to be true, I choose this day and all the rest of my days to uphold the promise engraved on Chris's wedding band:
"...where you go, I will go, where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may the Lord do to me, and worse, if anything but death parts you and me." Ruth 1:16-17
Today at Grey Stone was particularly special for me simply because of a song. On the exact day of our anniversary in the sanctuary where we were married, the church choir sang "You Are" as their anthem. Why does this song matter? Because at our wedding, two dear friends of ours sang the exact same thing...and it was beautiful. Chris and I would also sing it to each other ALL the time, which was slightly less beautiful but still just as meaningful. And if I remember correctly, we stood there on the platform mouthing the words to each other as Bev and Henry serenaded our guests. The song was written as a song of devotion to the Lord, but is also rather appropriate for a couple in love, so it becomes an excellent description for the Christian couple beginning a life of dedication to each other and to God. The words are rather simple:
You are the love of my life
You are the hope that I cling to
You mean more than this world to me
I wouldn't trade you for silver or gold
I wouldn't trade you for riches untold
You are...you are my everything
Until the world stops turning
Until the clouds fade from the sky
Until the sun stops rising
I'll need you in my life
And here's the reason why
You are the love of my life...
There are times in our life now when we forget what it once meant to us to just be in the same room. And we have so many more things to distract us from the love and beauty we saw in each other from the beginning. But this song is still a central truth to our marriage--Chris is everything God intended for me to have in a husband; there is nothing in the world I would trade for him; and because God has knit us together there will never be a day that I live when I will not need my husband.
He is, after all, my favorite sp'ub.
Sunday, May 31
Thursday, May 28
Things I Love About Durham
- The 'rents.
- Grey Stone.
- The man who does story time at the Northern Durham Library. I think he's a little crazy, but my kids have a BLAST!
- TWO Harris Teeters. Oh my.
- Southpoint Mall. And the "inside park", which is just about the only part of the mall I get to see with the kids around. Well, that and the food court. :)
- The fact that I don't hold the responsibility for keeping this house clean. I clean up, yes, but I don't have to worry about dusting or cleaning bathrooms...ahhh.
- Knowing I am so much closer to the places where I really grew up. Oh, the days when I was free and could be lazy without feeling so guilty about it!
- Driving by our old house and thinking, That poor man just can not keep up with his yard the way Chris could!
- Dunkin' Donuts. I know there's one in Fayetteville, but I don't think I could find it to save my life!
- The proximity of #9 to #5. :D
- Being home.
Monday, May 25
I am such a nerd...
Big Deal #1: Today being Memorial Day, Grandma had the day off. The whole day.
Big Deal #2: Crabtree Valley Mall is the new home of a brand-spanking-new Lego store.
These two things combined determined our morning outing: Raleigh!
Now, you must understand--I am 26 years old. And I was not a huge Lego fan as a kid. But I am apparently just enough of a nerd to fall in love with all things orderly, all things predictable, and all things that come with explicit instructions. I think I was more excited to see all the pre-built models in the store than my kids were...except for the 8-foot Captain Rex (from Star Wars: The Clone Wars) made entirely from little plastic bricks. That one they loved! I dragged Luke around like a little puppy saying, "Look! Isn't that cool?!?!" and making sure he saw every 2-foot by 2-foot box that held more than 700 pieces. He would usually just say, "Yeah" and try to walk off. Poor kid.
When we got home with nearly $100 worth of Legos (thanks, Grandma!) I was nearly as excited to put them together as the kids were. Adam got a Duplo set (the bigger ones, since he's still a little guy) that makes a little fire truck. It comes with a firefighter and a nearly-scary plastic hatchet and orange flame. Sara Beth chose one of the 3 girly things in the store--a set from a collection called Belville that has a horse and rider and bricks to build an awards stand and something for the horse to jump over. And Luke got one of the 3-in-1 sets that makes a racing bike, a chopper-style motorcycle, and a drag racer. They also got a set of magnetic 4x4 bricks in 10 different colors, so they can build cool things on them and then put that on the fridge. THEN the kids filled a Pick-a-Brick cup to boot! They had to promise Grandma that this was their last big treat for the whole week...and I will be very impressed if that actually happens! :D
I love these things! I love the way everything goes together just so; I love the fact that the Lego people have created so many cool things to fulfill a specific purpose; and I love that my 4-year old pays enough attention to them that he learns to use the instructions and do them all by himself. And of course, they must be perfect for him, or they just won't do.
Again, that's my boy.
Big Deal #2: Crabtree Valley Mall is the new home of a brand-spanking-new Lego store.
These two things combined determined our morning outing: Raleigh!
Now, you must understand--I am 26 years old. And I was not a huge Lego fan as a kid. But I am apparently just enough of a nerd to fall in love with all things orderly, all things predictable, and all things that come with explicit instructions. I think I was more excited to see all the pre-built models in the store than my kids were...except for the 8-foot Captain Rex (from Star Wars: The Clone Wars) made entirely from little plastic bricks. That one they loved! I dragged Luke around like a little puppy saying, "Look! Isn't that cool?!?!" and making sure he saw every 2-foot by 2-foot box that held more than 700 pieces. He would usually just say, "Yeah" and try to walk off. Poor kid.
When we got home with nearly $100 worth of Legos (thanks, Grandma!) I was nearly as excited to put them together as the kids were. Adam got a Duplo set (the bigger ones, since he's still a little guy) that makes a little fire truck. It comes with a firefighter and a nearly-scary plastic hatchet and orange flame. Sara Beth chose one of the 3 girly things in the store--a set from a collection called Belville that has a horse and rider and bricks to build an awards stand and something for the horse to jump over. And Luke got one of the 3-in-1 sets that makes a racing bike, a chopper-style motorcycle, and a drag racer. They also got a set of magnetic 4x4 bricks in 10 different colors, so they can build cool things on them and then put that on the fridge. THEN the kids filled a Pick-a-Brick cup to boot! They had to promise Grandma that this was their last big treat for the whole week...and I will be very impressed if that actually happens! :D
I love these things! I love the way everything goes together just so; I love the fact that the Lego people have created so many cool things to fulfill a specific purpose; and I love that my 4-year old pays enough attention to them that he learns to use the instructions and do them all by himself. And of course, they must be perfect for him, or they just won't do.
Again, that's my boy.
Thursday, May 21
The End of an Era
Today is Luke's last day of preschool! This morning he copied a message for his teachers in a card for them and then he left with his normal happy little smile. I wonder if he knows that he may never be in school with his little classmates again. Cumberland County has such an expansive school district there are elementary schools around every corner, so everyone is split up really well...although somehow there are still 700 students in the school Luke will attend next year. I can not imagine being 5 years old and going to school with 700 people. My elementary school served Pre-K through 8th grade and we had 350 students. Of course, I lived in the backwoods so that may have something to do with it!
I have been so impressed with his preschool as a whole, particularly his classroom teachers and how he feels so close to them even though he's one of 18 kids in the class. He has learned so many of the things I'd hoped he would--not letters and numbers and colors, necessarily, because he already knew so many of those things. He's learned how to be part of a group, how to eat lunch in a lunch room, how to sit still (I think) and listen to a teacher's instructions, and how to handle classroom assignments. And even though he's only 4 (for exactly 4 more weeks!), I can already see that struggle to belong that comes with being in school. There are a couple of little boys who really seem to be excited about being with Luke and are happy to listen to him share his expansive knowledge of the world. And then there are other times when he is seeking certain boys and he is honestly more like the third wheel in a tight friendship that has formed without him. But he still tries, which I think is amazing.
His whole take on getting out of school became evident last night when he was kissing me goodnight:
Me: Tommorow is your last day of preschool.
Him: Yeah.
Me: Are you sad?
Him: No. I'm excited! 'Cause after preschool we go...
Me: You get to go where? (I thought he would say Kindergarten)
Him: To...VACATION!
That's my boy. :)
I have been so impressed with his preschool as a whole, particularly his classroom teachers and how he feels so close to them even though he's one of 18 kids in the class. He has learned so many of the things I'd hoped he would--not letters and numbers and colors, necessarily, because he already knew so many of those things. He's learned how to be part of a group, how to eat lunch in a lunch room, how to sit still (I think) and listen to a teacher's instructions, and how to handle classroom assignments. And even though he's only 4 (for exactly 4 more weeks!), I can already see that struggle to belong that comes with being in school. There are a couple of little boys who really seem to be excited about being with Luke and are happy to listen to him share his expansive knowledge of the world. And then there are other times when he is seeking certain boys and he is honestly more like the third wheel in a tight friendship that has formed without him. But he still tries, which I think is amazing.
His whole take on getting out of school became evident last night when he was kissing me goodnight:
Me: Tommorow is your last day of preschool.
Him: Yeah.
Me: Are you sad?
Him: No. I'm excited! 'Cause after preschool we go...
Me: You get to go where? (I thought he would say Kindergarten)
Him: To...VACATION!
That's my boy. :)
Saturday, May 16
He Draws, I Move
It's been a bit of a dry spell here in the blog...
time to do something about that, I reckon.
First off, as I'm sitting on the loveseat and therefore looking right at this particular subject, I would like to celebrate the fact that I finally had pictures printed to fill the openings in our DVD cabinet. We've only had the thing since Christmas!
I think I would like to expand on some thoughts I've been considering lately. If you've read this post you know some of the challenges and darkness of my life over the past couple of years. Several months ago, I was literally flipping through my oldest Bible. I love this Bible, even though it was designed for a stage of life in which I no longer reside. It's a Student Bible, New International Version, complete with the original wave graphic on the front. All of the protective covering has peeled off the outside and the entire book of Matthew falls out when I open it up. It was the first one I actually owned, purchased at the Wal-Mart in Elkin, NC with my own money. I was 15.
One of our reading assignments my senior year of high school involved several different portions of the Bible: the first few chapters of Genesis, some of Matthew, and the entire book of Job. I read these out of my treasured Student Bible instead of the copied packets my teacher gave us, so those sections are replete with yellow highlighting that covers things that were important to me at the time. Every once in a while, I flip through the Bible and look at the things I've highlighted over the past 11 years. My life, of course, has changed a great deal since I was a nerdy little high school student living in my dorm room (it was a residential high school) and breaking in-room curfew sitting on my hall advisor's couch. More and more I am being drawn to those things I did not highlight the first time around, like this:
"He is wooing you from the jaws of distress to a spacious place free from restriction, to the comfort of your table laden with choice food."--Job 36:16
Here is the picture painted in my mind by this verse. It comes with a little artistic liberty as well, but hey, it's my blog. I see myself standing in an open field. Actually, it's the outfield of the baseball field at the elementary school I attended, but that's randomness for another discussion. Behind me, there is darkness. It's not spooky, scary, demons-are-creeping-up-on-me kind of darkness--the trees are bare, the sky boils with charcoal-colored clouds, and the ground becomes dense and muddy. In front of me the picture is different, with full trees and an open sky. I see (actually, I sense more than see) the presence of God beyond the tree line. He is using his hand (which is HUGE...'cause He's God, right?) to draw me toward him, like a Jedi would use "the force". I am not walking. I am not deciding whether to go or not. He draws, I move...as though He was pulling a rope tied around my waist. You know, the Bible says God's mercies are new every morning and I think I may finally be in a place to see that as truth instead of some empty promise.
And now, some very upbeat, exciting music as you continue on your day...
I am not Forgotten
Glorious
time to do something about that, I reckon.
First off, as I'm sitting on the loveseat and therefore looking right at this particular subject, I would like to celebrate the fact that I finally had pictures printed to fill the openings in our DVD cabinet. We've only had the thing since Christmas!
I think I would like to expand on some thoughts I've been considering lately. If you've read this post you know some of the challenges and darkness of my life over the past couple of years. Several months ago, I was literally flipping through my oldest Bible. I love this Bible, even though it was designed for a stage of life in which I no longer reside. It's a Student Bible, New International Version, complete with the original wave graphic on the front. All of the protective covering has peeled off the outside and the entire book of Matthew falls out when I open it up. It was the first one I actually owned, purchased at the Wal-Mart in Elkin, NC with my own money. I was 15.
One of our reading assignments my senior year of high school involved several different portions of the Bible: the first few chapters of Genesis, some of Matthew, and the entire book of Job. I read these out of my treasured Student Bible instead of the copied packets my teacher gave us, so those sections are replete with yellow highlighting that covers things that were important to me at the time. Every once in a while, I flip through the Bible and look at the things I've highlighted over the past 11 years. My life, of course, has changed a great deal since I was a nerdy little high school student living in my dorm room (it was a residential high school) and breaking in-room curfew sitting on my hall advisor's couch. More and more I am being drawn to those things I did not highlight the first time around, like this:
"He is wooing you from the jaws of distress to a spacious place free from restriction, to the comfort of your table laden with choice food."--Job 36:16
Here is the picture painted in my mind by this verse. It comes with a little artistic liberty as well, but hey, it's my blog. I see myself standing in an open field. Actually, it's the outfield of the baseball field at the elementary school I attended, but that's randomness for another discussion. Behind me, there is darkness. It's not spooky, scary, demons-are-creeping-up-on-me kind of darkness--the trees are bare, the sky boils with charcoal-colored clouds, and the ground becomes dense and muddy. In front of me the picture is different, with full trees and an open sky. I see (actually, I sense more than see) the presence of God beyond the tree line. He is using his hand (which is HUGE...'cause He's God, right?) to draw me toward him, like a Jedi would use "the force". I am not walking. I am not deciding whether to go or not. He draws, I move...as though He was pulling a rope tied around my waist. You know, the Bible says God's mercies are new every morning and I think I may finally be in a place to see that as truth instead of some empty promise.
And now, some very upbeat, exciting music as you continue on your day...
I am not Forgotten
Glorious
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