Lucky 13

On a Wednesday morning, thirteen years ago, I entered the Mesa, AZ temple to be married to my best friend and soulmate. Our sealing was at 9am, and Pat and I were able to spend some time alone in another sealing room before we were taken in to be sealed. What a remarkable experience it was to sit, inside the temple, looking into the eyes of the person I was about to marry. I don't remember the details of the ceremony, but I do remember how happy I was that I had made the choice to spend the rest of my life, here and after death, with Pat. We've now celebrated this day, June 23rd, for 13 years as our anniversary, and it always brings me joy. This year, we had an early anniversary surprise when my mom offered to watch the kids overnight so that DH and I could go to the temple. We chose to go to Albuquerque, since we had not ever attended there, and booked a room on priceline (at the Doubletree!). What a joy it was to spend that precious time with my sweetheart! All told, it was a grand total of about 30 hours, but a wonderful treat and retreat for us. Although it has taken us 13 years to have such an opportunity presented to us, it was wonderful enough that I would love to have it happen on a more regular basis. To end this post, I'm going to wax nostalgic, and list 13 of my favorite memories with my DH...
1. Visiting the Seneca lookout (1991)
2. Oak Creek Canyon proposal (1993)
3. Our honeymoon in Sedona (1993)
4. Our homemade Italian dinner and all day celebration of our 1st anniversary (1994)
5. His graduation and entrance into the job world (1998)
6. Me, supported in staying home with our children (1998-present)
7. Having our children (1995-2005)...k-so that's kind of cheating to put 6 in one, but...
8. Moving to Kearny and all that followed (2000-01)
9. Buying our own new home (9-11-2001)
10. Finding our home in Silver City (2003)
11. Our first family vacation (2004)
12. Prior anniversaries in Silver City (2003,04,05)
13. Our trip to Albuquerque (June 2006)
I LOVE YOU MY SWEETHEART, more now than I thought possible 13 years ago!
Happy Anniversary!