14 Years

^^ This picture, not 14 years ago...closer to 14 days, but actually a few less ;)

We watched part of our wedding video the other night. I was struck by just how young we were. And the cheesy grins on our faces totally made me smile. I also may or may not have gotten a laugh out of how much wedding styles have changed. That day not so long ago, yet somehow also so long ago, I am reminded how I really didn't know what I was getting myself into. I thought I was getting a buddy, a best friend. And I was, but also, so much more. We've built a life together. And building that life requires a trust I've never known before. It requires sacrifice of self and dreams. But it also brings unimaginable joy, comfort and peace.

Ian, you have embraced my hippy endeavors, heck I even got you to try powdered toothpaste!, and my obsession with the crate and barrel warehouse. I give the thumbs up to the car restorations and coffee roasting. You keep me grounded and I make you a little more flighty. We sure keep life interesting, don't we? I wouldn't want it any other way and I wouldn't want to share life with anyone else. Thank you for the past 14 years. I look forward to the many, many more, living out both life's joys and challenges with you by my side.


And just for fun, one of my favorite anniversary memories is still eating our wedding cake after 10 years. 

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12 Years

^^ Not a picture from our wedding, but taken a little before. It's one of us I really like and still have up in our house. 

On Sunday Ian and I celebrated our 12 year wedding anniversary. It's weird how in a way, it doesn't seem like that long ago. But then I think of all the life we have packed into the past 12 years and it does seem like a while ago. I mean, we got married back when wedding pictures were taken on film!!! In the past 12 years, we graduated from college, moved 7 times, owned 9 cars, visited 7 countries, had two kids and consumed more coffee together than could even be counted. So basically, life hasn't been boring.

Also, in the last 12 years, our love has grown and changed. It's become deep and meaningful in a way I didn't understand 12 years ago. Ian truly is my rock. He is my other half. He is the person I lean on, the person I laugh with, the person I cry with. I can't imagine living life any other way than with him by my side.

We were able to sneak away for a night on our anniversary. We left the kids with my parents and stayed at a hotel on the beach. We ate dinner without interruption and talked about future dreams and aspirations. We sat on the balcony of our room and watched the sun set. We enjoyed a leisurely morning of breakfast outside while listening to the waves. We took a long walk. Then we packed up and headed back to reality. It was a nice little time away.

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11 Years

We got married when times were simpler. Back before crazy pinterest weddings. Heck, we got married before digital photography was the thing. We have the ginormous wedding album to prove it. And the totally and completely staged pictures inside the album to prove it too. I remember back when we had only been married a couple years and people would say things like "you are newlyweds still" in a tone like "you don't understand". I didn't understand what I do now, but my love for you was no less fierce. It was different. Seeing you cradle and play with our children causes my love for you to soften (not lessen, but soften in a good way). Staring at you at the dinner table while our kids cause utter and complete chaos and only being able to speak to you with my eyes has caused my love for you to grow, not lessen. You are in this crazy life right beside me. I can't imagine anyone else in the world better suited for me than you. 11 years in, I still feel this way. In fact, I feel it more so. And, I have a feeling that 60 years in, I will feel it even more so.

I hope you know and understand how much I love you Ian Grimbleby. I hope you see it in every dinner I make, in every load of laundry I do, in every roll of toilet paper I put in your bathroom. Because I see your love for me when you take the kids and let me sleep in on a Saturday, when you rub my back and when you get the oil changed on my car. All those little things we do every day are love. Selfless acts of love.

I love you Ian Grimbleby both selflessly and selfishly. You are an amazing person that I feel privileged to be living life alongside. Here's to many, many more crazy, beautiful, amazing years together!



Looking back through the years...6 years, 7 years, 8 years, 9 years and 10 years. 

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Paradise

What feels like forever ago Just over a week ago Ian and I spent four days in Santa Barbara...in an Airstream trailer. This amazing getaway was for our 10 year anniversary.

This amazing find came about after I discovered that nice hotels in Santa Barbara during the summer run $800 and up a night. So I started looking around for some other alternatives and came across Santa Barbara Auto Camp. I thought Ian would think I was crazy, but he didn't and we booked our trip. Only a couple weeks after booking our trailer, SB Auto Camp was featured in Sunset magazine. Then I knew it was legit!

I felt like staying here was the best of both worlds - camping and hotel staying. We had our own little outdoor area and it was so nice to sit outside and drink our coffee in the morning and relax outside at night...complete with little lights in the trees! It also had a full size, real bed with a large tv (and cable!) at the end of the bed. The bathroom was amazing with a real toilet and a beautiful shower. And there was a small kitchen, stocked with coffee and everything. Didn't I tell you it was great? Oh and I should mention it had free wifi which is pathetically really important to me.

Now about our trip. We had an amazing time. Ian and I loved just being able to do whatever whenever and we didn't stress about anything. There's a two hour wait at the restaurant we want to go to? Not a problem! It was great. We enjoyed lounging around, eating great meals in peace, going to too many coffee shops, hiking and more. Like I said, amazing.

Of course, I was still constantly texting my mom to get updates on the kids. And every evening we facetimed with the kids. Aww, modern technology. It really does make things easy. This was the first time Isla has really gotten into facetime and it was cute. And Connor just kept asking where we were, before dropping the phone and running off to play. With my kids, it felt like getting them to talk to us for just a minute or two was a win. But still, seeing their smiling faces made being away from them so much easier.

The next time you are looking for a fun and easy getaway, I highly recommend SB Auto Camp. I even think it would be fun for us to take the kids back there...camping without any of the fuss is a win in my book! And Santa Barbara, who can say no to that?!

Our Wedding Cake

10 years later. I have to admit, one of the reasons I have forgotten about our wedding cake for so long is because, well, it wasn't taking up space in our freezer. Up until last year, it had been in my parent's freezer. And had they not had to replace their refrigerator, it probably would still be there.

I didn't even know how it was wrapped, as my mom did it (per our cake lady's instructions) after we left for our honeymoon. So this pink blob has always been a mystery. In fact, up until a couple days ago, I didn't realize it was frozen with the real flowers from our wedding on it.

I thought I would show you how the cake was wrapped, because it survived 10 years in a freezer amazingly well. I feel like I am doing this backwards, but just think of it like you are unwrapping a package with me....

The cake was wrapped in three of these pink bags. I'm not positive, but I am guessing the cake lady left them just for this purpose because they were the perfect size.

Inside the bags, the cake was merely wrapped in foil. 

Unwrapping the foil was pretty exciting. It was one of the moments of truth (the other being when we actually tasted the cake). I unwrapped the cake straight out of the freezer and was shocked to find it had NO frostbite or ice on it anywhere. The poor flowers didn't fare so well, but given that they had been frozen for 10 years, it is actually amazing how good they look. In fact, as the cake defrosted, the flowers actually smelled good. 

I actually snuck a taste of the frosting once the cake was defrosted, so knew that at least tasted fine with no weird consistency or anything. But I was shocked to find the cake tasted totally fine. It tasted a little on the dry side, like day old cake...but certainly not like 10 year old cake. I'm still super impressed with how well the cake fared. 

I have to admit, it was fun watching my kids eat a piece of my wedding cake. I mean, we are talking about MY KIDS eating MY WEDDING CAKE! Little people that weren't in existence when we were married. Little people that have become so much a part of our story getting to enjoy something from our beginning, from our wedding. That was pretty neat. 

So if anyone out there is considering keeping some cake for an amazingly long about of time and still want it to be edible, its totally doable.  And now that I think about it, I totally should have saved half the cake for our 20 year anniversary...do you think it would be ok if I dug it out of the trash (that it has been in overnight) and refroze it?

10 Years

10 years of living life with my partner in crime. We certainly have managed to pack a lot into the past 10 years of life. It's been an amazing adventure and there is no one I would rather spend it with than Ian. Sometimes I am shocked by how lucky I got considering we "chose" each other when we were just teenagers...it's almost as if God had something to do with that ;) 

I feel so amazingly blessed to be living life with someone who allows me to indulge in my Taco Bell cravings, unloads the clean dishes in the dishwasher (because he knows I hate that part), doesn't baulk at my lack of love for the mornings, loves coffee as much as I do, doesn't judge me for how often I take my car through the carwash (hey, it's unlimited!), puts the paper on the porch so the sprinklers don't soak it and fills my car with gas without me even knowing it. This man allows me to be who I am (quirks and all) and accepts and loves me just like that. 

I really don't think I tell him enough, but he is a blessing and and an amazing part of my life. I am looking forward to the next 10 years (and more after that) and all the adventure it holds for us...like Connor becoming a teenager (eek!). 

I love you Ian Grimbleby and am proud to be your wife. 

Built in Buddy

Recently I heard a mom talking about describing marriage to her 13 year old. She explained it as having a built in buddy. She told her son that her and her husband were best friends and enjoyed going on adventures together. That made me smile. 

This is us in 2003, just before we got married

Ian truly is my built in buddy. I feel completely myself around him. I love going on adventures with him. I love how laid back he is about things and always seems up for anything. 


I enjoy thinking about when we were first married, staying up all night watching 24 or going to Jack in the Box at 1am after I got off work. I love remembering sleeping in our rental car while we drove around Germany, getting fish and chips every Friday while we lived in Scotland. I love watching him walk up the street on his way home from work. Talking to him at the dinner table while the kids throw fits. I love living life with him.

I love walking through life with my built in buddy by my side. 

Happy nine years Ian! 

Here's to a million more!

Care to read about my thoughts on past anniversaries? You can read about years six, seven and eight. Enjoy!  

The Napa Valley Getaway

We are back from our anniversary getaway (even though our anniversary isn't for a couple more weeks). It really was great to get away and enjoy some distraction free time by ourselves. As I said before, this was our first time away by ourselves since having Connor 2.5 years ago. And I'm not going to lie, the first day I was on edge just thinking about what was happening with my children. Were they ok? Was Isla taking a bottle? Was Connor behaving himself? I just kept trying to remind myself that they were in good hands and kept my phone right by me at all times just in case. 


We stayed at an amazing little cottage and had a breakfast basket delivered to our doorstep every morning. How great is that?! Oh, and let me mention how great a complete nights sleep was! Especially since I hadn't experienced one in about a year. It was FABULOUS. Of course, I woke up having to deal with some very full ladies. Speaking of which, I have never liked pumping, I now have quite the disdain for it and quite the respect for those mamas out there that do it on a consistent basis. 

After finding out my kids made it through the first night fine, I was ready to head out for the day. We are random travelers. We don't plan and kind of make things up as we go along. So, we ended up grabbing sandwiches and eating them at a winery that overlooked the valley...we also ignored the posted sign and did not purchase any wine. 

As first time wine country visitors, we did take a tour at one of the wineries. After having to wait because the first tour was sold out (I told you we don't plan ahead!), we ended up getting a tour all to ourselves. What rockstars we are! 

One of my favorite parts of the trip was being able to get dressed up for dinner...don't worry, there will be another post of all my outfits. I enjoyed not having to think about baby access when dressing myself or how difficult it would be to run after a toddler in heels. I just got to get all dressed up and enjoy the company of my husband. It was great. Oh, and our cottage had complementary valet service to dinner. We were like ballers, getting dropped off and picked up! 

I must admit, even though we had a fabulous time, I was ready to get back to my babies...even if a certain little boy didn't hug us when we got home and probably wanted to say at his Papa & Memaw's a little longer. I try to not get offended! 

All in all, I had an amazing time on our little getaway and hope we will do it a little more frequently than every 2.5 years. Of course, next year is our 10 year anniversary so we will have to do something for that!  

8 Years

An engagement photo circa 2002

No, your eyes aren't playing tricks on you. I am biting Ian's ear in this picture. It was totally random and not planned. So you are seeing his true reaction to the ear biting incident. Why I did it? That remains a mystery to this day, along with many things I randomly do.

Happy 8 years of sharing a last name with the man I love. 

Every year, it just keeps getting better and better. This man just gets me. He is probably the only person on the planet that does. I love that I can 100% be myself around him. I love the comfort we have with each other. I love the peace and security I feel at night with him laying next to me. I love the joy I get when I see him playing with our son. I love his thoughtfulness when he helps around the house. I love that to this day, he still does all the ironing (for both of us). I love that I don't feel awkward sitting in silence with him. I love that we can have intelligent conversations with each other. I love that we both love coffee. I love that he watches out for me. I love that he tells me I am beautiful, even thought I am big and pregnant. I love that he is sarcastic.

But the one thing I love most is how much I know this man loves me.

Love

Today is a little something that Ian and I like to refer to as our anniversary. On this day 7 years ago, we got married...awww.

With every passing day since then, it seems that we have fallen more in love with each other and enjoying our time together more and more.

Let me tell you a little story. This story takes place on Friday, May 7, 1999. Ian was dropping me off at home after us going out on a date. He pulls into my driveway and leans in for what I think is a hug. Then, quickly (like literally it lasted all of 2 seconds) gave me a kiss. I stumbled out of the car wondering what happened. As soon as he was out of my driveway, I was on the phone to my friends. They quickly came over and we reenacted what just happened...without the actual kiss though.

Fast forward to today, now Ian is that person who I talk to about everything. Sure there are less reenactments (okay, so really NO reenactments), but I can always talk to him about everything going on. He is my best friend and the person I feel totally and completely comfortable around.

We've come a long way baby! Here are some photos from our dating years:

6 Years

Six years ago, I said "I do" to the man of my dreams. We dated for four years before that and were ready to get started on "our" life together. The past six years really has been bliss. We have grown up together.

Just in the first year, we bought a car, graduated from college, moved to a new city and got "grown up" jobs. Then came some fun vacations - camping in Big Sur, Hawaii and Europe. Then some domesticity - buying a house and buying a dog. Of course, just ten short months later, our lives were turned upside down with an international move. So, I wouldn't exactly call it a boring six years!

Through all the adventure, we have grown closer together. We truly enjoy being together on this adventure called life. And, to be honest, I am excited about the years ahead of us and what life will bring our way. And through it all, we have each other...and that's what matters the most.