It’s Our Anniversary!

My husband and I have an anniversary coming up and depending on who you ask we have been married for 18 years or about five years.  Those who consider themselves funny say five because we got married on a leap year, February 29, 1992, to be exact.  At the time, it seemed like a good idea because I had a soft spot for the number 29 and it happened to be February when we decided to elope.  Yes, I just said elope.  Let the gasping begin!  Honestly, I will admit there are times when I wish we had the wedding day, the party, with a photo album that holds all the memories, but really what matters is the marriage; the day to day life that you share with someone.  I am not being negative about anyone and their choices because some weddings I have been to were wonderful and beautiful and about the couple and their love, but there are others who spend oodles of money only to divorce within a couple of years.  How sad is that?  I mean, at least in our case, we didn’t spend a lot of money and there weren’t any pictures to have to burn get rid of if the marriage ended.  Well, there IS this great one from the San Diego newspaper!

Or this one that’s more recent after a morning of hiking together:

So, if you ask me, I will tell you it’s my 18th wedding anniversary somewhere between February 28 and March 1.(kind of lucky in a way because we can choose one day or just celebrate on both!) 
I would love to say it has been the best 18 years of my life, but that’s not true and it just might make you gag because, let’s face it, anyone who says their marriage is always wonderful and perfect is just lying.  We are  humans and things are hard sometimes.  For us, it started out really tough financially speaking, but we had a strong love and we got by on that for a long time.  I’m not kidding.  I can still remember eating peanut butter from a jar and ramen noodles for dinner together while listening to the love song station on the radio.  We had each other and it was fine.
When his time in the Navy ended we decided to come “home” to Maine simply because it was home and where most of our family was at the time. 
Over the years we have been through a LOT together.  From unemployment to an autism diagnosis for our older son, to the death of my Dad, the basic “loss” of my Mom, to a bit of a disconnect as a couple.  There have been good times, too, but it is the challenging ones that really build character and truly teach you about who you are and who your partner really is.  Any of these things could have torn us apart and probably have torn apart many other couples, but we have made an unspoken decision that it just isn’t an option for us to give up, at least not without true effort. 
Some of what is so great about my husband:
~he makes me laugh and that is REALLY important(at least for us)
~he really puts up with a lot(I am not always great to live with)
~he is truly the best support I could ask for(especially when my Dad was dying)
~he is a wonderful Dad(may sound strange, but that’s sexy!)
~he is the one person I can always count on to have my back and it goes the other way, too.

So, Happy 5th 18th Anniversary my Precious Paul!  I am looking forward to a few more rounds of “18” with you as my husband!

What do you think?  Should be be celebrating 4 1/2 to 5 years or 18?  I would love your opinions on this!!

Also, please share with me something as simple as how long you have been married to a reason you hate marriage or love it.  I love getting to know YOU and I hope after reading this, you have gotten to know me a little better.