Jack and I recently celebrated our eighth wedding anniversary. If I had to sum up what it’s like being married to him, I’d say it’s like being married to a grown-up Peter Pan (think of Robin Williams in Hook after he returns from Neverland). There is never a dull moment with Jack.
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| Racing each other to the Children’s museum entrance. |
With Jack, there is always an adventure. Sometimes those adventures are fun and exciting, other times they’re difficult, heartbreaking and troublesome. Still, Jack makes everything bearable, more entertaining and has a wonderful way of putting things into perspective. Eight years of marriage didn’t just happen to us: it came with a lot of personal growth, forgiveness, patience, learning to laugh and never losing sight of what’s important.
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| We had the carousel alllll to ourselves! |
One thing I love about Jack is that though he has a childlike sense of humor and is always up for fun, he didn’t hesitate to grow up. Growing up, it turns out, is the real adventure. He was excited to be married and didn’t dilly dally the process once we both knew we could live happily with each other and he welcomed being a father once Evelyn, Claire and Kate decided to come along.
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| Jack trying on one of Evelyn’s outfits. |
Though he’s in a sea of girls, he doesn’t treat them any differently than he would if they were his sons. They help stack wood, learn about car repairs, help tile, hand him tools and have an all around good time with him. And though Jack and I love working alongside one another, there is never any question that Jack holds me as the queen of the home and treats me accordingly.
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| The beautiful wind chime Jack got me this year after mne was decommissioned in a wind storm. |
Jack knew when he met me that I had a fascination with animals, particularly horses. Though we haven’t been able to afford a mansion to go along with a plot of land, he always works hard to make our rundown homes beautiful and comfortable for his family. It would have been easy for him to put his foot down and refuse to buy not one, but two fixer-uppers simply because they could accommodate a small farm and tell me to get rid of the horses. Instead, he meekly answers, “As you wish.” Seriously. He says that to me all the time.
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| Cutting wood for our wood burning stove and clearing some shade over our garden. |
Eight years isn’t very long when you think about it but in our faith, we believe that families can be together forever. That’s a long time. And I couldn’t imagine existing for eternity without Jack as my companion.
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| Dancing with Kate and Evie. |
