5 years

This Friday Ryan and I will celebrate 5 years of marriage. Have you ever noticed that the subject of time is a common conversation topic among people? "Wow! Time flies!" Or ... "Oh, my gosh, the day is dragging by" ... or ... "I can't believe it has been that long!" Doesn't that all sound familiar? Of course when you hit a milestone event, like a wedding anniversary, it is only natural to look back and reflect. For me ... have the 5-years flown by? Not exactly. Does our wedding feel like it was yesterday? No, not really. I guess, it feels as though it was about five years ago.

More important than how short or long the length of our marriage has felt to me, is how the marriage, itself, has felt. To me, our marriage has become a way of life. Before our wedding, we were technically living two, separate lives. Since then, we have created a life together. We've made a home ... a place of security, relaxation and joy. We've developed a lifestyle, which includes who we spend our time with, what we enjoy doing and how we spend our money. We've formed mutual hobbies, supported each other's goals and established dreams for the future. This isn't earth-shattering thinking; I know. However, I don't think I truly understood all of this until I was married. I love the man I chose to marry and the life we've built and will continue to construct.

To celebrate our anniversary, I forced Ryan to show his love for me by participating in a photo shoot of us two. Although, we may not look terribly different, on the outside, from our wedding day (besides the additional pounds and wrinkles) ... on the inside, I think the love, understanding and appreciation we have for each other has only grown. Here's to the five years of memories, laughter and love!