Somewhat belatedly, I am thankful for my marriage. Last Saturday, July 24, was my 6th wedding anniversary with Wes. It's hard to believe we've been married for six years, but I can hardly remember what my life was like before Wes. I know what I was like, I remember who I was, but I can't remember how my days were filled before him. I would never say, He is my life or he is my world, but if I'm going to pick a cliche, he does complete me. Makes me a better person. Makes me feel like a better person, anyway.
I don't know if our marriage has turned out like Wes expected, but I think it's fair to say that neither of us have been disappointed. We have some challenges, things we work on constantly, balances we try to reach, but we are truly happy with each other. I think I would be someone very different today had I married a different kind of man, and while I don't know that the same is true for Wes, I do think his life would look very different had he married a different kind of woman. Oliver has been, truly, the icing on our wedding cake. He has added much to our life and our marriage. And not just in our roles as mother and father, but in the way we work with and appreciate each other as spouses. Hopefully this new baby will just deepen that.
I'm thankful for my marriage this week, too, as Wes and I spending the week apart, both traveling but separately. He's at a conference in New Hampshire, and Oliver and I are soon off to visit my friend in Denver. (Which means I'm also very thankful for my friend Rachel, who is staying at our house with her two dogs to take care of Lucy -- and hopefully keep our plants alive.) Wes and I have spent lots of time apart in our years of dating and years married. From 8-5 workdays that led into 4-midnight shifts to 36-hour ICU shifts in residency to conferences and family visits to a month in Cleveland and another in Africa, Wes and I have learned to be apart. It's not something I look forward to -- I have plenty of space, so I don't need that "alone time" (which is now, of course, alone with Oliver) -- but it's something we both tolerate well. We certainly talk on the phone with each other more often now when we're apart than we did previously. We seek that connection with each other and want to share stories about Oliver. This week is strange because we're both away from home but not with each other.
So I'm thankful for Wes, which I've written about before, but I'm especially thankful for my marriage. That relationship has, as much as anything and more than many things, been responsible for my happiness in life. I love you, husband.
I don't know if our marriage has turned out like Wes expected, but I think it's fair to say that neither of us have been disappointed. We have some challenges, things we work on constantly, balances we try to reach, but we are truly happy with each other. I think I would be someone very different today had I married a different kind of man, and while I don't know that the same is true for Wes, I do think his life would look very different had he married a different kind of woman. Oliver has been, truly, the icing on our wedding cake. He has added much to our life and our marriage. And not just in our roles as mother and father, but in the way we work with and appreciate each other as spouses. Hopefully this new baby will just deepen that.
I'm thankful for my marriage this week, too, as Wes and I spending the week apart, both traveling but separately. He's at a conference in New Hampshire, and Oliver and I are soon off to visit my friend in Denver. (Which means I'm also very thankful for my friend Rachel, who is staying at our house with her two dogs to take care of Lucy -- and hopefully keep our plants alive.) Wes and I have spent lots of time apart in our years of dating and years married. From 8-5 workdays that led into 4-midnight shifts to 36-hour ICU shifts in residency to conferences and family visits to a month in Cleveland and another in Africa, Wes and I have learned to be apart. It's not something I look forward to -- I have plenty of space, so I don't need that "alone time" (which is now, of course, alone with Oliver) -- but it's something we both tolerate well. We certainly talk on the phone with each other more often now when we're apart than we did previously. We seek that connection with each other and want to share stories about Oliver. This week is strange because we're both away from home but not with each other.
So I'm thankful for Wes, which I've written about before, but I'm especially thankful for my marriage. That relationship has, as much as anything and more than many things, been responsible for my happiness in life. I love you, husband.
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