Russ and I celebrated 28 years, 2 months, and one day of marriage yesterday. On June 9th, Russ was in Kenya drilling wells – he also missed Father’s Day and his birthday. While we love the work he is doing in Kenya, it does not come without sacrifice.
It is complicated to go on dates because we rarely leave Dimples home with her siblings. With her happily camping with friends, we took the opportunity to go on a long date. We wandered through scenic towns, looked in a few shops, ate a late lunch overlooking Saratoga Passage, and drove down to every beach we could find – Mutiny Bay, Penn Cove, Admiralty Bay, Double Bluff, and others whose names I can’t recall. We discovered a public garden I had never seen and wandered about – the only people there.
We reveled in the quiet, the uninterrupted conversation,and the freedom to drive down any road without a child in the back seat saying, “Why are we turning here? Are we almost there? Do we know somebody who lives here?” It was a lovely day.
Marriage is a gift from God, and we don’t take it lightly. Good marriages take sacrifice, effort, and hard work. Sometimes our marriage is easy and joyful, other times we cling to the covenant we made so many years ago. I am deeply thankful for the husband God gave me and the way Russ lays down his life to love and serve our family. I’m blessed beyond measure.
Don’t insist on your rights, don’t blame each other, don’t judge or condemn each other, don’t find fault with each other, but accept each other as you are, and forgive each other every day from the bottom of your hearts…
It is not your love that sustains the marriage, but from now on, the marriage that sustains the love.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Happy weekend, friends.
Lisa
Thank you for the amazing word pictures, Lisa, as well as the reminder that love comes back around when we cling to the covenant we made. My husband and I have been together for almost 13 years in that marriage covenant. Right now, it is the covenant to which we cling. Love will be back by soon.
Oh how I know about clinging to the covenant. The past 18 months have been HARD. Our 30th anniversary is coming up, and, sadly, it will be a HARD one to celebrate.
Great quote.
Glad you and Russ had a beautiful day away!
Laurel
CONGRATULATIONS!!!
GREAT to have time alone!!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you for this great post on marriage and the commitment it is :) So glad you enjoyed some time away for much needed respite together! We are coming up on our 26th this month and with being home for 10 months with our 4 from ET know how precious and far between a true date is. I so enjoy reading your blog and gain some much needed wisdom from you :) We are not alone in this journey of motherhood and adoption. The time does fly by (our oldest bio is 25) but during the flight we need all the encouragement and help we can get! :) Keep on keeping on and know that as you are sharing your heart you are encouraging lots of us Mammas along the way!
Tracy :)
Congratulations! Thank you for such a beautiful post. My hubby is going to be in Nicaragua the end of this month during our 33rd anniversary, so if we celebrate we'll have to do it later. I was feeling a bit sad about that, until I read your post and realized what a blessing it is to have a husband that will give up so much to be a blessing to others and follow God. And though we won't be together for an anniversary, we should celebrate our marriage in some way the other 364 days in the year.
Glad you were able to take the time for a long date. I know what you mean by not being able to go on many dates due to not being able to leave a certain child at home with the other children. we have to work around that issue, too.