We were sitting in my car Sunday morning, both of us dripping wet. We had been standing outside at Smithville Lake for 2 hours, since 6 am that morning in the pouring rain, waiting to find out if the weather was going to cooperate enough for me to do the Cowboy Up Triathlon this year. The officials had just announced that they would not be holding the swimming and biking portion of the race, but in about 15 minutes they were going to go ahead and hold a 5K. I was really on the fence about whether I wanted to stay and run a 5K in the pouring rain when I had been training for 2 months for a Triathlon. A part of me felt like I should at least do something since I was there and all I had to do was put my shoes on, but I had already made my poor husband and mother-in-law stand in the rain since the crack of dawn, and my parents and my boys had gone home about an hour ago. I was losing the motivation to do anything but go home and drink a hot cup of coffee and take a hot shower. I asked Mark, “Ok, what do you think? I could go either way.” He looked at me with sincerity and said, “You are here, you should run in the rain for the Navy Seals.” Of course I couldn’t say no to that, so I ran in the pouring rain for the Navy Seals, with my husband standing at the finish line. 

This is one of the million reasons I LOVE my husband. After 8 years, he continues to be the most loving, compassionate, devoted, and supportive husband I could ever imagine having. I have drug this guy out into the elements a handful of times, at the crack of dawn, and he has never once complained and will continue to tell me “there is no place I would rather be.” 

“There is no place he would rather be.” I feel so blessed to continuously hear those words because I feel the same for him. There is no place I would rather be, but with this man by my side. We have been through SO much in the past 8 years. We have weathered our way through the complexities of a blended family, the premature birth and 2 month hospital stay of our first son, my diagnosis of Type 1 Diabetes, a colicky second son, the death of Mark’s brother and father, and of course the crushing diagnoses of MD for our sons. I know that you read and hear stuff like this all the time, but I truly feel like everything we have been through together has done nothing but make our foundation stronger. I know that God brought us together for a reason, even though we are so completely different in so many ways (he is very military and organized, and let’s just say it took me 3 hours to find these darn wedding photos), it just works. God knew what he was doing, and I thank HIM every day when I get to wake up to this guy. Happy Anniversary to my love, my soul-mate, my best friend, my rock, and all the other lovey dovey names I can think of because, well, that is just how you make me feel!! I look forward waking up next to you for the next 100 years!!!