Tag: marriage

Dating

by aweighwithme, posted in love+the like

William And Audrey

The other night when the Mr and I were out to dinner, we started talking about some of the quirks we’ve observed about each other, that maybe we didn’t know about ourselves.

He told me something I was completely unaware of. Apparently, when I’m in a large group in friendly conversation and am trying to make a point among a lot of competing voices, I raise my voice suddenly (and my eyebrows). Since I am mostly a soft-spoken person, this often catches him off-guard, and when he demonstrated his reaction (a funny expression of shock) it made me laugh out loud.

I love those moments when you get a glimpse beyond the everyday familiarity and see each other in a new way. It brings back a little of the new-ness and the mystery from when we were dating and getting to know each other.

Other questions we’ve asked each other on dates: What were you like when you were little? Where did you go on “dates” in high school? What was your favorite music in college?

I’d love more date night question ideas! Do you have any?

(Also, another list of funny questions to ask your date.)

Photo credit

Anniversary Getaway

by aweighwithme, posted in love+the like

Rancho-Valencia-courtyard

Last weekend, the Mr and I were gifted a one-night stay here, to celebrate our four-year anniversary. Here are a few pics of our mini getaway just a short drive from home, if you’d like to see!

Rancho-Valencia-poolside

The weather could not have been more perfect. We sat by the pool for hours and read books (his + mine).

Rancho-Valencia-villa

Rancho-Valencia-fireside

We enjoyed a lovely dinner and cocktails, and cozied up by the fireplace every chance we got.

Rancho-Valencia-OJJPG

The next morning, fresh orange juice was delivered with a morning paper (isn’t that such a great idea?). We ordered room service for breakfast, and enjoyed coffee by the fire.

It was such a lovely time of reminiscing about all our sweet memories of falling in love, traveling, figuring each other out, and just enjoying life together. It was hard to come back from such a beautiful and brief trip, but we both came home so relaxed and recharged.

Thanks for taking a peek! xo

Simple Pleasures

by aweighwithme, posted in life+such

evening-walk

Ever since the Mr got home from training, we’ve really been enjoying a few simple pleasures together. Even though we would never choose separation, it does have a way of making the smaller and seemingly mundane bits of life that much sweeter when we are together. Coffee together in the mornings, a quiet dinner at the table, an evening walk with our two pups Rambo (whose giant head is pictured above) and Remi.

I’ve felt compelled to savor these moments, to write them down, to cherish them.

Are there small moments with your significant other you’ve been savoring lately?

For the Love of 30

by aweighwithme, posted in love+the like

For the love of 30

On Sunday, the Mr. finally caught up with me.

He turned 30, six months after I did. Thank goodness, because every year, he loves reminding me that I am older than him for those six months.

I’m not a particularly crafty person, but one of the little ways I showed him the love was to make a pseudo-scrapbook, showing 30 (of many, many) things I adore about him.

30 things I love about you

I love your style

Asleep on the couch

You are fun

Since I plan on spending the next 50+ birthdays with this guy, I’m always looking for new and creative ideas to love on him every year… any suggestions? I’d love to hear some!

Grown-up

by aweighwithme, posted in life+such

classy grown up lady

The other day, a friend of mine at work was telling me a story about her seven-year old’s sense of humor (apparently he finds his stepdad’s impressions more hilarious than his mom’s dry one-liners). Afterwards, she said, “I have a real little human living in my house… I’m such an adult now.”

I found that so interesting, and began wondering about the times in my life that I’ve actually felt “grown up.” More often than not, I’ve only had a vague sense that life was pointing to adulthood – formal events that conventionally categorized me as an adult, but didn’t make me feel much different.

When I got married, it felt less like stepping into official “adulthood” and more like I was getting to hang out with my best friend everyday. And when I turned 30 last year, I knew the number was significant – but for some reason I still feel roughly 24. When we have kids, I will be interested to see if I magically cross into that place where I actually feel the age I am… Whatever that feels like.

When are we considered “grown-up”? Is it when you leave home for the first time? Is it when you get married? When you have a baby? When your baby develops a sense of humor?

When did you (if you’ve ever) start to feel like an “adult”?

Photo courtesy of Karen Walker.

Sound Check: Sometimes He Does

by aweighwithme, posted in love+the like, sound check

K+H

My grandparents in the mountains of NC

This tune by Lori McKenna is haunting, and at first listen, sounds like a mournful ballad about how her man doesn’t love her the way he should.

But the chorus clarifies the intention of this bittersweet song, which is that the love he has for her runs more deeply than what he does or doesn’t do to give her a sense of value or beauty.

Sometimes he loves me more

than I deserve to be loved

And sometimes he’s more than a heart like mine

could ever dream of

I’m thankful that my husband is the kind who listens when I tell him how my day went. And the love he has for me is sweeter than I could ever hope for. But the daily reality is… he is just a man. And he knows well that I am just a woman. And this mutual understanding of one another’s humanness frees us from the expectations of perfection and fulfillment that would ultimately crush us both. It frees us to love each other, wildly and without fear.

This song reminds me to be thankful for the darling man God gave me, regardless of our circumstances, our expectations, or our broken humanity… and reminds us both that our ultimate value is found in our Maker, not in one another.

Conquering Chaos

by aweighwithme, posted in home+decor

conquering_chaos

Clutter makes me crazy. At least once a day my husband has to ask me where I “filed” his keys (or wallet or papers or what have you) that he put on the counter 30 seconds ago. Luckily for me, he finds this behavior just slightly more endearing than he finds it annoying.

Just slightly.

And yet, one of the most important jobs of a Navy wife is corralling the endless amounts of crap your husband brings home. Perfect for an orderly-living-space-crazed nut like me. Our office/guest bedroom stores the bulk of said crap, and the shelves I bought to house all of it have just become a tossing target.

So with an hour and the help of some fabric bins, I attacked the offending nautical chaos.

conquering_chaos_2

Ahh.

Nevermind that the chaos will most likely return in about a week, and I will have to answer the question “Hey, where did you file my…?” even more than usual. But that won’t spoil my neurotic satisfaction.

(This couple has the opposite problem.)

Sound Check: Work With What You Got

by aweighwithme, posted in sound check

socalled_work_with_what_you_got

PLAY // Work With What You Got

My man isn’t scheduled to deploy for quite some time, and we have no babies (yet). And even though Navy life for us has been inconvenient and a pain in the keester at times, I am in awe of the women (and men too!) who juggle life with work, kids, and a deployed spouse all at the same time.

This tune by Socalled will be on standby for those days in the not-so-distant-future when being apart from my best friend has worn me down to a fray, or I want to punch the Tricare website (all three of them) in the proverbial face, or I just need a reminder that, sometimes, all you can do is Work with What You Got.