17 Years Later....

Many of you don't know this but Kirk and I met 17 years ago on Dec 11th (started talking on the phone around the 1st of Dec), 1991. We were engaged to be married by Jan 1st (he took me to the lake in Kirkland, to a gazebo there...I was facing the lake and it was a moonlit night....he got down on one knee and asked me to be his wife). We were married Feb 1st, 1992. Today we are celebrating 17 years of marriage. Looking back on our marriage, makes me think that society doesn't celebrate the marriages of those around them...be it 1 day, 1 month, 1 year or 100 years. The only time we take the time to celebrate a marriage is usually the 10th, 25th, 50th and 75th anniversary with our friend and family. Other than that most people seem to think wedding anniversaries are something to be privately celebrated between the husband and wife. I feel that if we as a society celebrated friends and families marriages each day, week, month and year with them by words of love and encouragement...there probably be more couples who had the support that is needed to make a marriage work and less divorce.

Yes, a marriage can make it but I feel that a support group of loving friends and family (even they themselves have suffered a loss of a marriage) is one of the best resources that God has given to us. Marriage isn't prefect by any means and it is something that needs to be worked on every minute of every day. Kirk and I have had our fair share of arguments. Not every day is a honeymoon....heck some months are even far from that. But we work at it because it is important to us and we love each other. I know I hear people drift apart and fall out of love with one another, but there are ways to bring them back together and help them fall in love with each other all over again...and sometimes that means those loving friends and family members have to support and encourage them.

I am also a firm believer that children should participate in some part of their parents Anniversary day, it helps to show them that marriage is sacred, special and something worth working on every minute of every day even when the going gets hard. Granted you should be showing them that all the time, but they also should be able to celebrate this special day when their dad married their mom and they became one. Trust me, I can tell you that I have been through hard in my marriage and when I said for better and worse, richer and poorer and in sickness and health...I meant it! I almost became a widow in 2004, when Kirk was pinned between semi truck and a trailer, this accident cost him his left arm and left him with a damaged back. The next year and a half was a very hard time in our marriage, there were days when we wanted to give up, throw in the towel but we meant those vows we said all those years ago. Marriage isn't something to take lightly or something to put on when it suits one, it is something to work on, to strife to make that best thing that ever happened to them and ever will. Of course, there are some exceptions to every rule, abuse of any type being one of them. Don't ever take someone hurting you. You have a right and deserve better.

In a lot of countries where marriages are arranged, marriages are viewed as an investment not only to the couple getting married but also to their family and friends. Did you know that over 60 % of marriages in the world are arranged marriages. Now granted not everyone of those marriages (probably a good precentage) are less than desirable marriages but even if they are less than desirable they are very unlikely to divorce, they seek the counsil of their family and friends to do everything possible to make it work. My point here is that we who are able to choose our spouse don't tend to take the view that marriage is an investment and very most likely neither do our family and friends. Of course this is just my 2 cents on this subject, it just is hard to know that the divorce rate is high. Over 1 million children will be effected by divorce this year and over 60% of them will be children under 6 years of age. These were recent satistics that I heard on a news report. Shocking isn't it? Please work on your marriage, do everything possible to save it and quit acting like it is some old purse you can throw and buy another to replace it when it doesn't suit you or isn't fashionable any more.

First Birthday Party Invite

Edward is so excited he got his first invite to a birthday party. He was invited to a party for another little boy here in town, that was on his blast ball team. It is this coming Monday. It is at 3pm, he has bowling league on Mondays too at 1pm so I set up for him to do a pre-bowl this Friday instead, so he can go to the party.

Our Niece

It is so hard to believe that our niece Megan who was almost 3 1/2 years old when Kirk and I got married, will be graduating from High School tomorrow. Where in the World did the Time Go? We wish her well in life and in her college years, we are so proud of her. We wish we could be there to spend her special day with her. I hope that she knows that she will be in our thoughts and prayers tomorrow, as she walks into her High School as a Senior for the last time and walks out a woman, a High School Graduate.

Edwards Dedication

Yesterday was Edwards Dedication at Church, it went well. We were so proud of him, especially after all the fussing he had done about not wanting to do it. He went up to the front though like a little champ and even let the pastor hold him during his prayer for Edward. We got so many compliments on how cute he looked in his little sailor suit and hat.

Valentine's Day

Kirk was gone over Valentine's Day. He was in Minnesota for a Business Conference. So needless to say it was just Edward and I for Valentine's Day. We had a great day together. I had told Kirk that he needed to make sure he brought home something special for Edward from him for Valentine's Dady. I was hoping Kirk would get me a little something, even if it was just flowers. I must say that I was greatly suprised when he presented me not only chocolates but a pair of diamond ruby earrings and a 3 tier heart diamond ruby necklace....his thought was that they would go beautifully with my ring he bought me for my anniversary. Guess what??? They do. :0)

Our 15th Anniversary

I was sure our Anniversary was going to pretty much be like every year (especially since Edward has come into the world), guess I was wrong (we didn't end up sitting at home and doing nothing). We went to a nice dinner at Carrabba's Italian Grill. Edward accompanied us. After we got sat down and settled in. Kirk ordered some wine and after dinner was order, the waitress looked right at me and told me she had something for me. She left and came back with a small dessert size plate. It had cherries on it and a beautiful ruby/diamond ring. Ruby's are the precious stone for 15 years. I will have to have it sized because they don't sell rings big enough for my chubby fingers so right now all I can do is wear it on my pinky and it is way to big to be a pinky ring. It was a great evening besides the fact that Edward was (and is) very moody the whole time. Just had to share, since everyone was interested in what we were going to do.