34 years and still kickin'...

***I have been working on this post for over a week now, I just haven't been able to find the time to finish it between running a business, planning a wedding, selling a house, being on a 10 year reunion diet, oh yeah, and sleeping. So without further delay - a week and a half too late anniversary post for my parents!***

Today my parents celebrate their 34th wedding anniversary. Wow. Congrats mom & dad, what a wonderful example of commitment you have set for me. When Ricky & I get married at the start of next year we will have been dating 2 months shy of 7 years. I feel like that is an eternity. I can't wait to know what 34 feels like or 50 for that matter.

I often think back to what my parents were like in this stage of their relationship. Where they nervous, excited, how did they know each other were 'the one.' Were they anxious about having kids, did they already have kids names picked out, what where their dreams as a couple. I feel like I think about these things more and more as Ricky and I get closer to embarking on this journey of our own. We are both so blessed to come from loving families that value the family unit. It was something that was very important to us when seeking a life partner and I couldn't be happier at how well the two families have accepted each of us into their own and even bonded together.

Even though kids are not happening anytime soon, I often think of what our children will be like. Who will they look like, what will they learn from us, can they please have Ricky's math skills and my love for dance - will they be healthy, have goals and build a great life of their own? So much of who I am I gained from my parents. I look like my mom - blonde hair & blue eyes, I have similar passions with her - dancing, shopping, dancing, shopping.... But I feel like I have inside attributes of my dad - I will talk to anyone, I have his kind heart, I am sensitive. I feel like I am a wonderful little mix of both of my parents wrapped up into one. And I hope our kids are just like that.

Wedding anniversaries are such milestones. They mark growth and change - children growing up and parents growing older. They mark job losses and gains, family vacations and new homes, they mark pets and challenges and happiness.

But most importantly they mark love. Happy Anniversary mom & dad. I love you.