All the hard work and effort to keep this marriage strong has been so worth it. I love that the traditional wedding gift for 9 years is pottery. (We've actually found that there are other items like porcelain and willow that are appropriate for a traditional 9 year gift, but I like pottery the best.) Pottery is made through a creative, time-consuming process. It begins as clay - soft and wet, fragile and malleable. It requires attention and care and thought. It can take any shape the potter wants. Then, when fire and time are added, it becomes hard and sturdy. It's strong yet still breakable, so it continues to need care, but it can sustain more pressure and handling. It easily compares to our marriage at 9 years - still young and shapeable. We continue to have an opportunity to create it as we want, to mold and shape it in the direction we like. But, our marriage is getting wiser and stronger as time moves on.
Today we celebrate 9 years! It's one of my favorite days - the birth of our marriage. The day we became a family of two. The day we stood before our family and friends and community with their support and encouragement. And, Sam and I have had a lot of fun reminiscing about our wedding and celebrating our 9th year together. This year, specifically, we have come so far and endured quite a bit.
When I got home from work, Banner and Quinn had prepared a couple of surprises for me. Then, the boys, BeeBee, and I watched our wedding video, and it was fun to look at so many familiar faces for them at a time before the boys even existed. Quinn and I even did the Hora while it played on the screen. Then, once Sam got home, we left for a very casual dinner at Chuy's followed by a Menchie's treat, and we ended our date at the grocery store... a typical end to a date night for us these days!
Once BeeBee and Zaide left, Sam gave me a beautiful card and a Willow Tree (Get it? Willow is another 9th anniversary gift.) figurine called Around You of a man and woman sitting together. Then, we watched Our Ninth Year - the video I created for him documenting our year together - week by week! This year, I chose to include lots of photos of our "everyday," mundane views: the photos of Banner walking home from school, the view I have during dinner at our table, the boys sleeping, the way Knox would climb down the stairs earlier this year, the little notes the boys would write or draw, the silly faces, and the cuddles on the couch. Those are the real day-to-day images that I want to remember, and we'll look back at this video one day far from now - and our "everyday" will come right back to us.
I know I am so blessed to have the husband I do, the kids I do, the family and friends that I do. And, each year, even though it's stressful and time-consuming and tedious as all hell, I LOVE that we get to have this family treasure. This weekend, we'll have our annual anniversary video viewing with friends and family, and I can't wait to watch with them. We couldn't have this life without our village, and we are so grateful to them for the support, love, time, and energy they give to our family! I remember wanting a big wedding - it was important to me for one reason only: I wanted to know we had a huge circle of family and friends who were cheering us on, who were there to encourage us and lift us up, who were embracing us with their love, who would be our safety net through the tough times. Each year, we make celebrating us a priority, and I hope that continues with each anniversary. As I've said in years past, if I have to drive myself nuts making this video for our family every year, it would be the greatest blessing and biggest joy.
Sam, I love you. Thank you for choosing me. I choose you every day!
Happy Ninth Anniversary! Here's to 9 more!
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