Happy Anniversary to My Handsome Hubby

Today

We celebrate our 15th Anniversary

I love this picture he snuck on me on our anniversary trip.

It feels like we JUST got married and it feels like it's been foooooorever.  

Over our trip this past weekend, we had long moments where we didn't talk at all.  We had times we couldn't get words out fast enough.

The moments I loved the most were all of them.

Seriously.

I don't think there was a time when we weren't holding hands, when his arms weren't wrapped around me, when I did not feel like the most special and most loved girl in the world.

Everywhere we went he would say, "It's our anniversary.  15 years this year."  I would have not said a word and he boasted it to the world.

They say you fall more and more in love with someone.  That's not true.  You work hard to keep your relationship strong.  It can be ugly.  It can be painful.  And the end result is a love so deep you cannot in any way put it into words.

And we are still figuring all this out.

15 years.

Jake and I sat on a dock this weekend, watching fireworks, wondering what our life would look like in 15 more years.  All we know for sure is that it will be here faster than we think it will get here.

And there is no one I would rather celebrate all the mundane, all the little, all the big, all the momentous moments in my life than with him.

I have posted this song before, but, gosh I like it and it ALWAYS makes me think of him.

I never imagined that on the day I said "I do" our life would take the turns it has, the journey it has, the memories we have.  I wouldn't have ever pictured our family being these four boys.

And I couldn't imagine being happier.

I love you, Jake.  I can't wait to see what 15 more years has in store for us.

12 Days of Christmas

My husband doesn't seem to especially like Christmas.

I'll let you all try to take that information in.

So one year, for some reason I can't now recall, I started the twelve day of Christmas for him.

What I would do is on the day after Christmas I would give him a gift to say "Welcome to the 12 Days of Christmas!".  For instance, this year it was one big giant hershey kiss.

Then every day I give him a gift that coincides with the number, and every gift has some silly little poem or clue with it.

It's usually just practical gifts, but the way they are presented makes it fun.  The second day, for instance, was a new pair of gloves.

The third day of Christmas was a new picture frame.

It's to continue our "wall of love".

I started this a few years ago for one of the 12 days of Christmas and have just picked up the frames as we needed.  The frames just come from Family Dollar, cheap frames that hold a priceless memories.  Every one of the pictures shows some happy memory with the two of us.  The oldest picture is one where I am just pregnant for S2, I haven't found any older than that.  But it's fun to be headed out for something and say "Hey, this should go on our wall!".

But some of the gifts are silly.

I found this sign (We Accept Cash) when we went down to Shipsiwana.  I knew my husband, being the Dutch man he is, would love this.  And, because he likes to be practical, it would work well with our farm business as well.

Anyone who arrives at our door, knowing us well, is going to crack up.

This picture is still making me smile.

On the 12th day of Christmas I give him a 12 month planner.  This year they were nearly impossible to find - and I was looking BEFORE Christmas.  I found one not as great as the others in the past.  But then I go through the planner and write all sorts of dates down for him, stuff that is only important to us.   Some of it's practical, other's just silly.  But it's sweet to him and I.

When the 12 days are done, it seems so sad.

Last year I did not go through the trouble of doing the 12 days of Christmas.  I thought maybe he was burned out on it since the year before he didn't seem that "into it".  But he moaned and whined (did I just say that, really?) about how much he missed it.

It takes a long time to figure out what to do!  I carry a notebook with me and am constantly jotting down ideas down.  I began this journey for 12 days this fall.  I wish I had started earlier.

It's a silly fun way to show him how much I love him.  I think I enjoy it as much as he does.

I always miss it when it's done too.  

A blogging friend of mine did a Twelve Days of Christmas this year too....ranch style.  Every day since Christmas she has listed some thing she is thankful for in ranching according to the day.  It's been fun to read them on the days I hand over my gifts.  You can check them out at Life on a Kansas Cattle Ranch.


PS
Just got asked to give more ideas.  Here is what I did for the 12 days this year...

Day 1 - giant hershey kiss
Day 2- a pair of gloves
Day 3- our 3 picture frame
Day 4 - 2 pair of tall wool boot socks
Day 5 - a book on cd
Day 6 - underwear
Day 7 - his cash sign
Day 8 - a box of turtles
Day 9 - a cd of 9 songs I made
Day 10 - 10 pairs of socks
Day 11 - a cd
Day 12 - his planner

The cd I made him was a new idea and way so much fun (thanks, Morgan, for that idea!).  I usually fill in gift cards on day five and ten but this year I had too many other ideas.  I also have gotten us romantic something or another, not to be mentioned :), on a specific day.  But mostly, it's just practical stuff with a silly poem to go with it.  And sometimes, the poem doesn't even rhyme.

Another idea I have tried - and failed miserably at - is then celebrating the 25th of every month.  Jake is notorious for letting me know how many months till Christmas because he knows I hate winter.  It's his little way to tease me.  But I usually end up forgetting his 25th gifts of the month - those were just the same sort of thing, gift cards or a special candy, his favorite dessert or some such thing.

You are only limited by your creativity.  I am not so creative so I have to start EARLY and am always looking for new ideas.  Give me some of your ideas!

Are There Girl Stores?

With all my boys, I have lots and lots of conversations in a day. The conversations that make me laugh the most often though happen with S4, my Abraham. He cracks me up and doesn't even try to crack me up.

He has a friend named Elizabeth. Before this year began, we did not know Elizabeth. Oh sure, we passed her in the hallway while she clutched a doll in one hand and someone's hand in the other but otherwise we never gave her another thought.

I mean, she is a GIRL. (and we are always running late)

But at the beginning of the school year, these two became the best of friends. And it's an amazing thing to behold. The two are hardly able to not be together. They draw pictures for each other. They choose each other for "helper" in class. They know each other's birthday and favorite colors and favorite foods.

Abraham has declared he is going to marry her because she has the right colored hair.

Elizabeth declares her wedding to Abraham all the time.

They hug when they see each other. They hug each other when they leave. They play trains and bake cookies and cupcakes together.

Her birthday is in May and Abraham is quite concerned about it. He keeps asking me to make sure I know exactly what day it is and stressed the fact that we MUST be at her house on her birthday.

I ask him if he thinks he has been invited. This thought has not crossed his mind. Of COURSE he is suppose to be at Elizabeth's house on her birthday.

But today he was very concerned because he wasn't sure what to get her for her birthday - you know, the one in MAY (and it's only March)?

I asked him what he wanted to get her for her birthday, thinking he may start to think of things she likes. He wrinkled his nose as he thought hard "Do stores have girl things?"

"Yes." (I may have snickered)

"Maybe we should just go to a girl store and look around for a girl something for Elizabeth. Because she is a girl. But I don't know what girl things there are. Are you sure there are girl stores?"

I nodded. "Oh, I'm sure."

Since I seemed to be understanding the importance of this birthday, he skipped away outside.

Only to come in a little bit later.

"Moma, when I shiver my whole body moves. It goes like this.....". He showed me a shiver. "And then sometimes even my tummy shakes with a shiver. And my legs and my arms and my head and I'm wondering......."

His voice dropped so I had to look into his worried little face.

"....am I sick?"

"No, honey, everyone shakes when they shiver."

He looked skeptical.

"Tell you what, sit in front of the heater and you'll get warm and won't shiver so much."

"Good idea, Moma," he agreed.

Yes, his moma is brilliant. Because she knows there are girl stores and she knows how to get rid of shivers.

The Song I am Singing Today...

Ever since this song was released, I have loved it.

I love the lyrics, the video, the song...pretty much everything.

I sing this to Jake regularly. Because he DOES make me fall in love with him over and over and over and over and over and over again.

It's wonderful.

I can have days when I am furious (I act very grown up then and stomp my foot. Really). I have bad days and bad mom days and wife fail days. But Jake can come in, make me giggle, hug me close, sing me a silly song and make me fall in love with him all over again.

We aren't perfect. (I am nearly perfect in every way, nearly...I like to remind him of that :) ) But there is honestly no one else that I want to watch the rest of life with than with him at my side.

He still gives me butterflies.

Really.

And that is such a grand feeling.

I wrote a whole blog post about him and I on our anniversary. I wish it were warm enough for me to be barefoot on our porch eating ice cream like it was when I wrote that post, but it's good to read again and recall that day...

And KNOW I don't feel that way anymore about him.

I feel it even more now.

I love you handsome hubby!

From my head to the tip of my barefoot toes.

Daddy coming home from Blizzard 2-2-11

Because so many people have told me they love this video....

Because I really do think my husband is a super hero and this video proves that the boys do too..

Because it's Valentine's Day tomorrow and you can hear the love in this...

I give you (again).....

35 Days till Spring

We Went Camping...Last Thoughts

I love camping.

I don’t like the arrival to get there, I don’t like the process of packing up, and I don’t like hauling the camper.

I do, however, enjoy that first morning when I wake up and know I am in the middle of the woods in my outdated and cozy camper, about to make coffee for the girls I am camping with (seriously, we don’t skimp on coffee and cocoa. We pack too much, better to have too much than too little, we have a coffee pot, a French press, whipping cream, half and half, three creamers to choose from, and gourmet coffee….).

I love our days at the beach, where we sit and watch the kids play hard and shriek with laughter and I get to catch up with girls on our lives over the past year…because although we have all been together all year, we haven’t had time to just sit and be….

I love how for a few days, I don’t have to harp on the boys for one bit of chores. For a few days we get to just sit around and be a relaxed Moma and her four boys.

And I would never trade one of those moments for anything.

Thanks for sharing this camping trip with us. Look for new camping posts come August…