May Updates: Anniversary

24 May 2011

Dear Dan,
Happy anniversary! While I know that in the grand scheme of things, it's really not that long, I kind of can't believe we've been married for 3 years, and known each other for over 10. Where has the time gone?

One of the sure advantages of marrying your high school sweetheart is that you've seen each other grow up during critical times of life. This also means that you've seen me at my (hopefully) dorkiest, so it's pretty much impossible for us to ever feel uncomfortable or embarrassed around each other. I love our evenings filled with inside jokes and laughter, and that you still think I'm pretty even after I've just blow dried my hair and you think it might eat you. That there is true love.

But as we enjoyed an anniversary dinner at one of our new favorite restaurants, and talked about past favorite moments and future aspirations and foods to try, I remembered something. I remembered that even though I sometimes feel like we know everything about each other, we don't. We're still sharing new stories and expressing new thoughts. And that's the real reason I married you - because with you, there's always more. Although the present is pretty darn great, the best is always yet to come.

And that's the true blessing of it all - the comfort and the anticipation, the familiar and the new.

Being able to recite in my head along with you your favorite stories to share? Giggling with you each night in bed? The reduced social anxiety from having you along with me in any group? Smiling as we watch our baby sleep? Familiar. Comfortable. Safe.

Discovering new hobbies and developing new interests together? Hearing stories of random little American cities to which your family traveled? Learning about your ancestors? Visiting new places? New. Exciting. Fun. And I love it all.

To be honest, I don't remember the first time you told me you loved me, or vice versa. I remember you hinting at maybe wanting to marry me while we were still in high school (driving me to near-panic-attack state), before we were even dating. I remember our first, extraordinarily awkward, kiss. But I don't remember a specific time when we first said those words.

But really, with you, there was no question. How you felt and how I did was always obvious to us...the words almost seemed an afterthought. You've always treated me like a queen, and that's how I really knew.

So maybe I don't remember because I just always knew.

love,
love

May Updates + Africa Feedback

May has been an absolute whirlwind. To be frank, I'm a little overwhelmed at the thought of writing about it all. So, maybe several posts? Get excited for monthly updates and anniversaries and graduations, oh my!

Also, thank you for the many kind requests for Africa pictures. It has been, um, over 2 months. Since we got back. I am totally lame. I'm considering doing a "daily Africa" photo for a while. So instead of posting 8 kazillion pictures all at once, I'd post at least one a day. What do you think? Would anyone like that/care?

Boys

This morning, we went over to the nice little park across the street from our place. Nat's previously loved the baby swings, but today, he was really fixated on something else. The sandbox? Not really. The other babies? A bit.

But he was most enthralled by...



...the leaf blower. And the furniture truck driving by.

It's already starting.

New York Suggestions?

Headed to NYC tomorrow. It's been over two years since we were last there - weird, considering we used to go up at least a couple of times a year. We've done most of the touristy stuff, but anyone have any (preferably off-the-beaten-path) suggestions?

Weekend

Are weekends not just the most glorious thing ever? (The answer to that would be yes.) This past one seemed particularly relaxing and delightful (much needed in the face of my last. week. ever. of school. please don't get me started on how much I cannot wait to be done with all these assignments that are taunting me). (Yes, I do realize that I abuse parentheticals.)

Friday marked Nat's very first library storytime. The librarian was a delightful woman named Ms. Raquel who clearly adores small children. It was for the two and under crowd, which was perfect. There was much song-singing and hand-clapping. I may have enjoyed it even more than Nat.

Saturday morning, we folded laundry while watching Tangled (yes, we are horrendously behind on pop culture). Have you seen it? Because if you haven't, I must ask you to please close your computer and go watch it right this second. It is just so delightful and charming.

Then Saturday evening, we somehow lucked into getting to go to the National Symphony with some friends from church. Because they are long-standing season ticket holders, they have seats on the third row, center section, left side. If you are familiar with concert halls, you'll know this is smack dab in front of the first violin section, and is also where any soloists stand. And the soloist that night just happened to be Sarah Chang, playing the Bruch violin concerto. Oh. My. Goodness. She was just so so spectacular. I could not get over her control and passion and the double stops! Some of you may know that I, too, play the violin, so it was a special treat for me to be about 10 feet away from her and see all her fingerings and facial expressions. Phenomenal. (Oh, and if things couldn't get better, the symphony also played Brahms Symphony No. 1. It was a good night.)

Also, for the first time (since my parents came along with us), we left Nat with some very kind friends to babysit for a whole evening. I wasn't sure how things would go, but evidently he was a perfect angel and was snoozing happily in bed when we came home. I kind of didn't know what to do with myself. Speaking of sleeping, you know how I mentioned that his has been a disaster? Well, so here's the deal: Dan and I are seminary teachers. I haven't really gone all that much since Nat came along, as I usually feel guilty waking him up at some dark and dreary hour. I had been feeling that I should go back, but his sleep was still a mess, so I'd been holding off. Then, last Wednesday, we decided to just take him, feeling that it would all work out. And I kid you not - he has slept no fewer than 10 hours straight since. Coincidence? I think not.

And finally, I just went to get Nat from his nap and found the below. He's started using a pacifier (does the word binky make anyone else grind their teeth just a little bit?) on occasion to fall asleep, and it usually falls out of his mouth in his crib. A lot of times, he'll wake up and just be playing and chatting in there, and will grab it and stick it in his mouth. He evidently decided that one was not enough.


And a couple others, just for fun:


(The last one is from Easter. It is shockingly difficult to get a remotely decent family shot on self-timer.)