Friday, August 1, 2008

Romance from the other side of the world!


Look what my sweet, romantic husband sent me yesterday!!!!

18 gorgeous red roses....one for each year that we have known each other.


Sixteen years ago yesterday we were just two kids,

22 and 21,

with stars in our eyes and big dreams, but not much else.

We said our vows on the lawn of a church in Ellicott City, MD.

On that warm July afternoon, I don't think either one of us realized how hard we were going to have to fight for our marriage in the years to come or how miraculously God would take our imperfections and blend them together to make something of beauty.




Our first son was already 8 months old at the time of our marriage.

We packed up a U-haul with barely enough to start a home, left all we knew and made our first of many moves within months of our wedding day.

Being newlyweds with a toddler and living far from the support of family,

we were definitely challenged right from the start.

By many people's assumptions, we were probably not supposed to make it.

But, through the grace of a God that brought us together in the first place,
we now stand here 16 years later,
with four beautiful children and a lifetime of experiences across this country.



God has promoted David beyond our best plans
and he has brought us through many storms of life.
We are continually in awe over how far God has brought us from the place where we began.
Not just geographically, but emotionally and spiritually as well.
When we consider the whole picture, we really feel like we are beating the odds.
Two kids with dead end jobs, both from broken homes, who met in a dance club, had a baby and got married so young, aren't supposed to be where we are right now!
We should be having some sort of custody battle or managing step parents and blending familes according to our culture today.
In this country where so many marriages end in divorce, we realize that we are not the norm.

This makes us all the more

thankful,

protective

and watchful

over the state of our marriage.
We are so blessed to have a marriage that is not perfect,
but is alive
and purposeful.
It hasn't been an easy road at all.
It's been quite trying at times, but we've relied heavily on our faith
and have grown
and have learned
from every mistake we've made.

We have learned that the most important thing we can do for our marriage ( and our kids) is to intentionally love eachother every day.




David is a gift to me.
The more I know him, the more I am convinced that God designed him just for me.
All of his quirks, the way he sees the world,
his values and character
and even his flaws
are all a part of God's plan to perfect something in me and to make me into
who I am supposed to be.
Where I am weak, David has strengths.
Where David is weak, I have strengths.
We could (and sometimes do!) take these differences
and build a mountain of irritation and frustration on them.
But the longer we are together
and the more we learn about God's purpose for us,
the more we realize that God designed us specifically for each other so that we could be
one strong unit,
not two completely comfortable individuals.
Becoming one strong unit is definitely not a comfortable task!
It means that both sides have to sacrifice their own personal preferences and desires to make harmonious decisions that benefit the unit.
I'm not always good at this and I often forget the ultimate goal, but I'm getting better with God's grace and each passing year.
My mom began praying for my mate when I was a little girl.
When we were married, she gave him a card telling him how great it was to know the person for whom she had been praying all those years.
A while ago I started praying for the men my daughters would one day marry and build a life with.
It would be my greatest joy if they found men that were as dedicated to their families and loved them as much as their Daddy loves me!
Happy Anniversary, honey!
I love you more everyday!!




I wanted to include some photos of us when we were first beginning our lives together, but they are burried way too deep in the storage closet.
Just one of the many inconveniences of having all of the strong men in my house elsewhere!

11 comments:

Laura said...

awww very beautiful!.

Happy Anniversary to the both of you!.

Such a touching post, I wish you both many more wonderful years together, a world of happiness, watching the kids grow together and just so much more love to continue in all the years to come!.

Lovely roses!

Anonymous said...

Well said! You are a testimony of a loving God at work!

Tammy (Mom to this crazy bunch) said...

Happy Anniversary! You are a very blessed woman and it sounds like you understand that.
My twentieth anniversary was wednesday and your post very closely echoes my sentiments.
We are two very blessed women.
Tammy

Jodi said...

What a absolutely beautiful & heartfelt post.

Happy Anniversary to the both of you! God bless you both. The flowers are gorgeous and even though he may be far away right now, his heart is right there with you. God bless you both.

Unknown said...

Happy Anniversary. May God continue to bless your family.

kristi said...

Happy Anniversary! I loved this post.

jonahbonah said...

Happy Anniversary!!!

Mine and my hubby's story is SO similar! I'll have to dig out those pics in the coming months and have them put on my computer so I can share my story on my blog in April...our 7th anniversary.

Our son asked us yesterday how old we were when we got married. He was 20, I was 21. We had a 2 month old. We have definitely, with God's strength, survived what isn't done so much in today's society!!!! So many would have thrown in the towel LONG AGO!!

Thanks Becca for your blog! You are a true inspiration. If your DH's job ever brings you to Mayport or NAS in Jax, FL we'll HAVE to meet!

Melissa
theperfecttrio.blogspot.com

sweetfunkyvintage said...

beautiful!
missy

Joyfully Crafted said...

Thanks for sharing your heart with us. What a beautiful written testimony to God's plan for our marriage as we grow in Him.

Rebekah said...

Happy anniversary, Becca. I love your story, it is so human and real, and that's what people need - real people whose lives were changed by Jesus who will share their story.

Gorgeous flowers, too = bonus points for David :)

The Downtown Boutique said...

Happy belated Anniversary. What a beautiful story about you and your husband. My husband and I celebrated our 4 year anniversary on July 17th. God has really blessed me with a wonderful, patient, strong, handsome husband!

God bless!