Today Beau and I celebrate nine years of being married. Nine years. I always feel so nostalgic around this time of year as I think back to all the June 2nds we've shared together. We went on our very first date twelve years ago on this day, and were married exactly three years later. And after returning from a soul filling trip to Mexico just a few days ago, the two of us have had more time than usual to recount, reminisce, and reconnect over many of the moments and memories that are part of our love story. This time, we decided to go back to the same place we went on our honeymoon, really to see if it was as good as we remember it to be. The familiarity of it all - the beach, the amazing restaurants, those romantic cabana beds, the white robes in the closet and the hammock swinging from our patio, brought us right back to that week right after we were married, just two tan, clueless kids who didn't know much except that we were out of our element and completely crazy about each other.
Babies...
When I'm feeling nostalgic, I love curling up on the couch with my computer, sorting through years of pictures that bring me right back to where it all started. I love these pictures from our honeymoon for so many reasons. I love that compared to this most recent trip that was rather thrown together, I remember how extensive my honeymoon wardrobe was, how I had every last swimsuit, matching sarong, and beach hat planned and written out for every day of our honeymoon. And Beau's wardrobe, too. :) I love how poor the quality is on most of my pictures, and smile to think about that little Canon Elf that fit just perfect in my clutch. I don't love how slow my metabolism has gotten since then, but do love that I have kept most of those evening dresses, especially that brown one that Beau still talks about. But most of all, I love how carefree and completely happy we look about life and each other. If we only knew how tired we'd feel nine years later... :)
I can't say I loved my clothes for this trip, I didn't take very many pictures, and I sure wish I could have dropped those last five pounds I was hoping to shed before we left last week, but Beau and I both said this was the best trip the two of us have had together. He told me later that in the airport on the way there, we were talking about something random and I casually said I was so excited to have five entire days to just talk to him. He said it warmed his heart to know how much I looked forward to just simply being with him, talking and being completely present with each other. And we had one of the best weeks. When I think back to our honeymoon, all that time together was our normal and we probably took a lot of it for granted. Now, nine years later, nothing went unnoticed. Every conversation, every bite, every touch, every long and drawn out dinner, every moment made us feel alive and very much in love.
I used to think we became a family the day we were married. Nine years in, though, I realize that was just a seed planted in a big plot of untainted, unweathered soil. And what makes a family, what makes a love story, isn't the seed itself, but all the growing that takes place as life presents itself to us day by day. That's how roots get strong - not by that single seed itself, but by all those moments that don't go unnoticed, the ones that make you feel alive and at home, like there's no where in the world you'd rather be. Like when you're sitting at the table during dinner and one of the kids says something funny and you immediately lock eyes with each other from across the table and smile in awe and adoration. Or when you still feel like a 22 year old girl playing house when you cook dinner together with the music turned up. Or when your favorite part of a few days away is the opportunity to really talk to each other. These are the things that make a family - the things that make me so very lucky to be part of his.
Happy Nine Years, babe. Let's spend every anniversary in Mexico, okay?
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