On January 2, 2016, Terry and I celebrated our 18th anniversary! I lost my dad suddenly after Terry and I were married seven short years. One day I spoke to my dad on the phone, and the next, he was in Heaven. This was a difficult time for my own marriage. My grief was so great during those dark days. It wasn’t just the grief that I dealt with, but the thought that I, too, could be left a widow in just a matter of minutes. This realization was frightening. Terry soon bought life insurance, which helped ease my mind a bit, but the fear of losing him was something I would continue to face regularly. That knowledge of death has made me even more grateful for these 18 years of life with my soul mate. I pray we have many more.

I shared a link to my love story on Facebook, and the kind comments overwhelmed me. Thank you for reading it and for taking the time to put a smile on my face. I rarely get comments, and when I do they tend to be more on the serious side. Your kind words reminded me of Proverbs 15:23, A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it! Thank you for your good words. It made my anniversary extra special.

My mother is visiting us for the holiday season and she was kind enough to watch the children overnight so that Terry and I could have some time away together. We enjoyed seeing the movie Creed (highly recommended for any Rocky fans out there!), eating at our favorite restaurants, and we even went shopping! This year, he gave me a wonderful gift: the gift of a good night’s sleep, otherwise known as a new mattress! After nine moves and 18 years, it was time. It was delivered today!

Like most, if not all, married couples, our marriage has had its struggles. We are two strong-willed sinners, and it often shows. Because of God’s grace, we have survived these years together, faithful and more in love than we have ever been. In fact, we both commented that compared to how much we love each other today, it’s as though we didn’t love one another at all on our wedding day. That’s how much it’s grown.

My mother must go back to Arkansas tomorrow. The holidays are over, my anniversary trip is in the past, and it’s back to reality for me. But I realized something fabulous today: I love my reality.