18 months of AWESOME

Holy cr*p, I can't believe it's been almost a full YEAR since I last posted to this. Ugh. I know where my priorities lie! Just kidding =) Anywho, as of late I've been thinking about some of the things I've learned since I got married to my best friend ever. Yup, we've been married for almost 19 months and I don't hate him. At all. In fact, I really can't imagine life without him. Sometimes we think back on our single days, when I had a lot of my dinners paid for, milkshakes at Sheri's about once a week and pretty much doing whatever I wanted and he had his dream job of game testing making mucho dinero playing games because he was so willing to do OT... but in reality, neither of us would go back that life. Ever. Our tickle fights, dollar movies, sushi splurges and trips to visit family and friends beat out any and all of these things. AND- I think that I've grown more in the past 18 months of marriage than I did when I was out in the mission field knocking doors and riding bikes in skirts in good ol' Oklahoma. For the past bit, I've been attempting to think of some of the things that I've learned since being married. I know there are a lot more people who've been married longer, and I'm not going to profess to know EVERYTHING- there certainly is a lot more to learn about life (and each other, I think) but I think it's good to stop and reflect a bit how far we've come. Here's a list of some of the things I've learned:

1. It's OK, and good, to have personal space.
I like sewing and going to Joann's. He likes playing video games. Sometimes, I take a trip to a fabric store while he stays at home and levels up or plays a round of capture the flag with a bunch of buddies online. It's cool. AND, I learned from good friends of ours, that it's important to encourage each other with your spouse's interests, even if they don't match yours. Will is especially good at this- he's always encouraging me to go find a project or hang out with a girlfriend or something. I think it's good- and healthy- to do things outside of each other.

 
2. DO NOT compare yourselves with each other. You're a TEAM.
I just realized this one today. One of the hardest things we deal with is talking about each others' past, and why we are the way we are. This inevitably ended up with hurt feelings and frustration, because we were both frustrated that one didn't understand the other and blamed the other for any negative situations. Instead of dwelling on why we're in the position we're in, we've decided to focus on how we as a team can be better and how we can individually contribute to the whole- I feel blessed that both of us have the ability to contribute in equal, although not alike, ways and that although it's hard sometimes working together brings us closer to one another.

 3. Do fun stuff together.
This is kind of a DUH!, but we've enjoyed trying new things (esp. food) together. We also love shopping (when we get some extra money) and walking to Smith's every day. Doing fun stuff together nurtures our little family and helps give it good memories and a chance to talk. We also have really enjoyed picking a TV series on Netflix and enjoying it together (lately we've watched How I Met Your Mother). We also love having other couples, families and individuals over every once in a while. It's awesome.

 
4. Serve together.
We serve in our local temple (a sacred, special church building- read more about it here) as ordinance workers. This has been wonderful because we've not only been able to learn and appreciate what goes on that much more but we've met a lot of other couples (mostly older) who have the same goals we do- they're just further down the road of life than we are. I've felt a kind of love that I have only felt while serving- a pure kind of charity for everyone I work with there and everyone that comes in. It's been awesome sharing this with Will.

5. HAVE. PATIENCE.
Hey- guess what. I'm human and I make mistakes. Guess what again- so does Will. I've learned that although there are some things that need to be worked out, a lot of things can just be overlooked. I know that I am definitely NOT perfect, and sometimes I just need to remember that neither is Will- although sometimes it sure seems like he is =)

6. Have spiritual experiences together.
For us, it's super important to go to church, pray, and attend the temple together. I love going to church with Will- there's a special kind of love that I feel for him when we go. I'm not 100% sure what it is, but I think that it might have to do with doing something that I know the Lord wants us to be doing together. I also love reading the scriptures with him- even if it's just one verse. It's great hearing him read those sacred words. Praying together is also awesome. I wish I wrote down all of the things that the sealer (the person who married us) advised us right before we got married, but I remember one thing- make sure that your spouse hears you pray for him/her. It's so special when we pray together and Will asks something especially for me.

7. LAUGH together.
We do this a lot. Whether it's tickle fights, watching a funny show, or laughing about something that happened to us in the day, we love to laugh. I swear, with the lack of exercise we enjoy, this is what keeps us skinny.

8. ACT like you're in love!
I love it when people ask us if we were just married- because we kind of still act like it. I mean, we've toned down quite a bit, but we still love to hold hands, hug, kiss, etc. etc. I think this is important, and keeps things ALIVE!

9. DO things for each other.
Will loves a clean kitchen and Snickerdoodles, I love flowers and attention. Sometimes it's just nice when he does something super nice for me- like this yummilicious dinner he made for me for our first anniversary-

Anyway, there are a plethora more things I've learned, but this is a gist of everything. I hope we never slow down and stop acting like newlyweds all the time. We keep saying that maybe it will stop after the first 6 months, 18 months, child, etc. etc., but we sure hope it doesn't. And I'm not planning on letting it!