My better half asked me to do a review of our 2nd year together (omg he asked me?! He DOES care!), so here we go:
We made it through the year. We’re still crazy about each other. We’re both still alive (and only came close to killing each other a few times).
The end
I’ve heard the first 2 years in marriage are the hardest, and I mentioned how completely untrue that was for the first year, but it seemed to be true for year 2, cuz this past year was a lot harder than last year. There were a number of reasons that made it more difficult, one main one was me starting grad school. That put a lot of financial stressors on us (my part time pay check and my full time tuition bill are NOT getting along!) and it also forced us to be more flexible in our roles. Previously, I was working full time, but I still had 4 days off per week and was able to take care of the household duties on my days off – the cooking, the cleaning, grocery shopping, Target runs, etc. Adding grad school to my plate gave me 5-6 full days + studying and left me exhausted and with no free time. So Merrick picked up a lot of the housekeeping duties (doodie… hehe). So those new roles were something we both had to adjust to. He still works his M-F 9-5 and now has to come home and figure out what we’re going to eat, and make sure there’s clean dishes to eat off of. And I had to adjust to realizing not doing those tasks does NOT make me a crappy wife.
We also adjusted to having a roommate living with us for about 6 months. I didn’t write much about it, but it was difficult. We really enjoyed our time with him and our friendship, but it’s hard once you’re used to certain things, ya know? Merrick and I are pretty attuned to each others idiosyncrasies and habits, and adding another person to the mix in close quarters can make for some hard times.
But, again, we came out on top of a difficult year and we’re stronger for it. Plus, year 3 has started out very well with a (now) healthy husband and the end of this school year in sight. Plus fondue dates and SoCal sunshine. Baby, year 3 gone be the best year YET!
Fondue Anniversary Date!
So here’s our year in review:
May 2010
We started the year with our anniversary weekend on Catalina Island and then came home and said goodbye to our South African friends, Celo and Danai at Mozambique, oh and I had red/purple/crazy hair! (obviously my hair color is monumental in our marriage…)
June 2010
Of course the highlight of June was our trip to India
It’s like Where’s Waldo, but it’s Where’s the Whitey?… Didja find her? Here’s a hint, she’s the one who’s skin is translucent on the end
July 2010
We made it back State Side and to the Atlantic for my family vacay and to celebrate my Mamma’s big birthday!
August 2010
Aaaannnd she’s blonde again!
August was a fun, busy, traveling month… Well obviously August 5th is a National Holiday and of course the wedding of my brother-in-law to his lovely wife (and that awesome party they threw!) and then there was the trip to San Fran… it was a good month!
September 2010
September saw the start of my Masters program, which similar to marriage, has been one of the hardest things I’ve done but still one of the best decisions I’ve made. Then to give me a break from drowning in hypertension and diabetes, my college girlfriends visited me!
October 2010
Beach Bonfires, Lakers games and back to Michigan for some family time
November 2010
Despite being too busy to breathe and still getting used to being back in school, I had plenty to be thankful for. Friends birthday parties and colder California weather found us in November. We celebrated being married for 18 months and the “Mansgiving” at our house
December 2010
We made it back to the Frozen Tundra just in time for the freeze. Remind me WHY on earth we keep going back there every time it’s COLD? But we had a white Christmas and were able to spend some quality time with both our fams.
January 2011
We rang in the new year with my baby bro visiting , then we finished January off by “winning” the pajama party contest… Cuz who would pass this up?
February 2011
Hmm… pretty much a nothing month. Meh.
March 2011
We went up to LA, then up to San Francisco and Merrick’s parents dropped by! It was a busy month – finishing school and traveling, then starting school again. No rest for the
San Fransicso bus shot… which woulda been cool circa 1999 when MySpace was cool.
April 2011
I watched as my best friend married her best friend in the Lone Star State.
A gold fire hydrant. Only in Laguna Beach, and only cuz I don’t have any good pictures of us from April. But seriously? A gold fire hydrant?!
And that brings us right back full circle, back to where we started, and where we start every year – May 16th, where we wipe the slate clean and start over with full hearts and big dreams. It’s where we mark our growth as husband and wife, but never forget how it all began…
