1000 days older..and wiser?

Hey there!  Today is not just Wednesday, it's a special Wednesday.  The kind that makes you smile, even though the weekend is 2 long days away and you (STILL) do not have your bike back when you're racing ahem completing a tri this weekend.
A good day.
No negatives.
You see, 3 years ago today....was the best day of my life.  There was dancing.  There was good friends and family.  There was the most gorgeous dress I have ever laid eyes on.
And there was him.

My best friend.

The love of my life.

The man that I married :-)

And 3 years after we tied the knot, we're still that giggling, silly in love couple.  And even though we're still extreme "newbies" when it comes to marriage, I'd like to think we've figured just a few things out.  Just a few though. I'll get back to you on the rest in another 50 years :-P

So, what have I learned?

Well, after 1000 days (plus a few) of marriage....I know....

1.  That it's okay to disagree on some things.  Sunshine, rosy, we see eye to eye on everything....not.  I think we got caught up in this one for about 30 seconds when we both realized that we are way too strong minded to "yes man" to everything the other one says.  With that said, we try to respect each other's opinions and meet half way.  Most of the time.  (Except for when I'm right...kidding!)

2.  Some things....you really need to agree on.  Finances.  Kiddos.  The general life plan.  Those are all kinda important!  Laugh, go ahead.  It seems obvious.  But I cant even count the number of newlyweds we know that haven't had these conversations.  The huz and I agree on how to spend our money.  What our financial goals are.  How many kids we want.  Heck, even how we plan to raise them.  Perfection?  Nope, not even close.  But our values are very similar.  And that's what counts.

3.  Have each other's backs...and don't make a frickin' big deal out of it!  Little things.  If it's garbage day and it's not my job, but the huz works late, I'll empty the garbage.  If it's my turn to do laundry but he's spinning in the basement, he'll throw a load in.  Big things = we are untied on family issues and who stands where with each side (I won't throw him under the bus and he won't throw me under the bus).   It's awesome to know that even if he doesn't agree with me, he will wait to talk about it privately.  And not remind me that he (again) emptied the dishwasher.  It makes my life easier.  And I do the same for him.  And that's called team effort, right?

4.  Support each other's goals and ambitions.  We each had a goal to do an Ironman.  And we did, cheering and sherpa-ing the other one on.  Then I did another one.  And two more marathons.  And 3 half ironmans...and....well, you get the point.  I'm addicted.  Now, to be fair, without the huz, I never would have heard about this tri-ath-a what crap.  But I adore it.  And he supports it...whether its (cough) helping me with my bike, buying me a new gizmo (a bike seat is an EXCELLENT Christmas gift!), rubbing my feet after a 20 miler, or cheering me on on the big day.  Awesome.

5.   Be "The rock".  No, I'm not wishing I married Dwayne Johnson (ick).  But....Greg is my rock.  When things don't go well.  When I trip up, fall.  When I lose sight of my goals.  When I've had a bad day.  And I do the same for him.  We each have that stubborn german pick your feet up and work for what you want mentality, but when the going gets rough, everyone needs a shoulder to cry on.  And he has a pretty broad shoulder (as well as wonderful snuggle arms).

6.  Don't ever forget the little things.  Silly notes in the morning (dry) cereal.  Filling the gas tank.  Picking up his favorite drink cause it's on sale at the store.  Watching So you Think You can Dance/Hockey (Clearly, we all know that SYTCD would be the huz's choice, right?)  It's the small things that we know make each other happy.  And it works.  Don't ever lose your identity in a couple....but don't ever forget your teammate in life.  Check.

7.  Divide and Conquer.  Once again, we're a team.  I don't know how to operate the lawn mower (no, for real).  But I can cut my grocery or clothes shopping bill in half (at least).  The huz can't fold laundry to save his soul.  I got that.  And while he's downloading my latest kindle book or movie that we want to see, I'm making a frugal, healthy dinner.  He's got the dishes.  And I'll pack his lunch for the next day.  Necessary?  Probably not.  But we each know what we're good at, we get it done, and then we can hang out :-)

8.  Institute the 5 minute rule.  Nuh uh, get your mind out of the gutter.  We have a 5 minute work rule.  Work and life can get stressful at times.  And you need to vent. So when we sit down to dinner, we each take 5 minutes if we need it and kvetch about work.  Then, we're cut off.  And we can focus on wayyyy more important things.  Like if we're going to watch SYTYCD or Hockey :-P

9.  Get physcial.  Still a family blog, I promise!!  We won't go into the whole horizontal polka...obviously, that's important, but I'm talking about the little touches.  The huz smooches me as soon as he gets home and before he leaves in the morning.  We snuggle before bed and talk about life.  We hold hands when we can.  That's, of course, in addition to the arm wresting, bumping, chasing and grabbing.  What, that's not normal?  Ehh, we're about 6 years old.  Forgive me :-)

10.  Don't be so damn serious.  Life is serious enough.  Joke.  Quote Family guy.  Get caught up in stupid things you've said and make fun of it ad nauseum.  Pants Dance.  Watch cartoons.  Talk in stupid voices.  Who says you actually have to grow up when you're a grown up?  Greg is mytother half, my best friend.  And sometimes, that means it's play time.  6 year old play time :-P (our children will hate us one day). 

Have we got it all figured out?  Not even close.  But in the past 1000 days...I've learned a bit more about the man of my dreams, one day at a time.  And I can't wait for the next 10,000 +.

Now onto the good stuff.  Presents!  (lol).  What did we do for "leather?"  Stay tuned......