A snippet of our past.

Just to be honest, I don't like the blog posts where people go on and on about how amazing their husbands are. It really gets on my nerves. Especially if I'm feeling a little down, it just stings. So I'm going to try not to do that, but beware: my man really stepped it up on Friday and I'm going to have to brag. Just a little.
We actually went to high school together. I always thought he was really cute, but we never really hung out together. We ran around in different circles, but knew the same people. One night in college when I was a Junior, we saw each other at a party. We talked for a really long time and I knew that I liked him. A lot. He was seeing someone at the time, and so was I, so nothing ever came of it. I didn't see him again for about a year after that night, and the same thing happened. We literally stayed up talking for hours one night and this time, we were both single. He took me to lunch the next day and we've been together ever since.
Although it has not always been rainbows and butterflies, I have always loved him in that "we were meant for each other" kind of way. You know...that love that as soon as you feel it, you know that you'll never be the same. The kind that, you know that no matter what....this person has a piece of you now.
When our first son was born, our love grew leaps and bounds. I finally completely surrendered myself to the Lord and let Him take over my life. My life completely changed. My husbands...not so much. We moved to Columbus and my love for the Lord grew even more. My husband's was not growing (not fast enough for me anyway). My first instinct was to tell him what he needed to do. Haha. The Lord probably thought that was funny. I finally decided that it was out of my hands and all I could do was pray and stay strong in the Lord. He saw me doing my bible study every night and he saw the change in me. He certainly did not surrender to God because of me, but he finally surrendered, and it was A-MA-ZING. Our marriage became so much more than I thought it could ever be. We were no longer living for ourselves, but for Him. We soak up the Word together, and it is unbelievable. We still struggle. We certainly fail...daily. But it's different. We're in this together and it feels so good to have a true partner in this life. He's also not too bad on the eyes.
Friday was our anniversary. I told J that all that I wanted was for him to set up a babysitter and take me somewhere to eat. Nothing fancy. Just a few hours of just me and him time. The night before, he told me that he had not called a babysitter yet. That made me feel really special. Then on Friday, he sent me a dozen roses to work. Why was I not happy? I guess because I didn't want roses. I wanted some time with him alone and he was too busy to set something up. I sent him a quick text saying "thanks" and literally left work and went and bought the man some running shorts and a card. Seriously. That's what I got him. When I got home, he was mopping our floors. The house was SPOTLESS. He said "The babysitter will be here at 7. Get dressed." He cooked dinner for the kids and gave them baths while I got dressed. By myself. Without my children pulling on my legs. He then gave me my gift. A beautiful wooden cross. Okay, so he sent me a dozen roses to work, cleaned the house, fed and bathed the kids, bought me a thoughtful present, set up a babysitter, and took me out...and I bought the man a pair of running shorts! His birthday is next month. Maybe I can make up for my foolishness then. Will I ever learn? Will I ever realize what I have? Lord, I hope so. I felt like a selfish brat. And rightfully so. Oh well...I have many, many more years to get it right!

And...we're off!

After all of the worrying, crying, second guessing, changing my mind, changing it back summer that I've had...Merrit is at home at his new school! Granted he has only been there for 2 days, those 2 days have me feeling very, very good about my decision. On the first day, I walked him to class snapping picture after picture as he walked confidently down the hall like he owned the place.

As soon as we entered the classroom, he saw his buddy Jack that he's been with since he was 2. Right at home. They hugged and Jack (having been there about 15 minutes longer than Merrit) proceded to show him the ropes.

During nap time, I couldn't stand it anymore and had to go get a look at him. He was sleeping hard on his little nap mat after playing hard all morning. I got to rub his back and give him kisses. His teacher told me that he was a leader in the classroom and had done great so far. My heart is overflowing with joy, relief, happiness, and hope. To top it all off, they are on a color system. A green on his planner means a really good day, yellow is not so good, and red is a really bad day. You can also earn a purple. A purple means that you went above and beyond the teacher's expectations.

Look what my baby got on his 2nd day of school:

If you can't tell...that smiley face is a bright purple!! If I am THIS excited about one smiley face on his planner after day 2, I can not even imagine how I'm going to feel after his first grade, his first test, his first report card, oh my goodness...I'm getting ahead of myself here. Bottom line...my baby is okay. He is doing great and is loving his new school. I love it because I know his teacher and know he will be well taken care of. I also LOVE the fact that I can stop in and love on him while he's napping from time to time. Right now, life is good.

This little booger also had his first day last week:

His first day wasn't QUITE as big of a deal as Merrit's was because although he moved rooms, he did not move schools! He has had so much fun being back with his friends. When I pick him up, he tries to tell me about them. He calls his friend Sam, Mim. I love it. He calls his friend Isabella, Beda. I ask him about his teachers and he just smiles.

We're all off to a pretty good start. God is good. He knew my fears and has put them to rest. Bring on the Fall weather!!