Five.

Today I am grateful for five years.

because that is the exact length of time today that The Marsh and I have been married.

Happy Anniversary to me.

and my husband splurged and got me pizza. he's a charmer, that one.

But in all seriousness, I am grateful that we've made it five years. I know compared to some people that doesn't seem like a long period of time, but hey, how many marriages do you see even make it past that first year nowadays.

I'm not going to stand here on my soapbox and say it was super easy. but i'm not going to try and tell you it was a struggle either. I would definately say we fall into that easier side of the marriage hardship spectrum.

I guess the best way to describe it is to say that loving The Marsh is easy, it's the rest of life that's hard.

unexpected pregnancies. stressful jobs. parenting in general. crappy apartments. buying a house and then having to deal with what being a home owner in new england actually means. sick family members. it all adds up. it can take a toll. and alot of people let it affect their marriages. or maybe they try really hard not to, but it happens anyway.

I think somewhere along the way The Marsh and I silently agreed to hold our marriage seperate from everything else thats going on in our life. It doesn't matter if we had a fabulous day and everything was peachy or if we had a horrible day and we just couldn't wait for it to be over. we always kiss each other goodnight, say we love each other, and tell each other how grateful we are to have each other. I'm dead serious. We literally say thank you to each other for being there almost everyday. and maybe it's cheesy or corny. but i've never once doubted that my husband loved me. I would rather be tacky romantics than be left in the dark wondering how my husband feels about me any more. Sometimes he initiates it, sometimes I do, but it just happens. I'm grateful for that too.

It seems so amazing to me that it's been five years. sometimes it feels like it went by in a blink of an eye. other times I remember that five years is essentially a fifth of my life and I cannot believe we've been together that long. either way i hope the next five years are just as amazing.

and the five years after that....

and the five years after that...

well, you get the point.

Thanks for reading!
Lana