Hiiii there old pal. I'm sorry I have been gone so long. Life has been very full; surprise parties, moving, family visits, unpacking/organizing, job hunting.. etc etc. But I'm happy to announce that I will be much more present from here on out. There are lots of things I'd like to share with you, things I've been doing and things I've been thinking about but for now I just have a few simple thoughts I wanted to post. As I was updating my art blog with the latest wedding piece (you should go sneak a peek:)  I suddenly found myself discussing marriage to.. myself? and decided to drop those thoughts here instead:

Marriage is so.. interesting. I feel like I've grown a lot in my understanding, ideas, and expectations of what marriage is. I smile thinking back to my own wedding day knowing the innocent, naive ideas I had of what it would mean to be a married women. But I like that that's where I was and that this is where I am now. I still want to approach marriage (and love) with that same innocence but I'm happy to have gained greater knowledge of it as well. A marriage union has such amazing and limitless potential. I want to be tapping into that. I sense some life lessons being learned very soon.. Stay tuned friends..

recommended reading

Today I ended up poking through Relevant magazine online and came across this alluring title. At first glance I didn't feel like the author, Ward, was totally feeling my marriage vibes. Overall I'm not a fan of the way he phrases his first point, though I understand what he's saying about sacrifice and growth. I just like the phrase "happily ever after" :)

But from his first point, I loved this:

I have gone through so many moments in our short time of marriage where I suddenly see something about myself I don't like. When I think about it... I don't think I've ever noticed so many negative things about myself in such a short period of time! It can feel really overwhelming and embarrassing but Stan is always at my side, encouraging me to make changes and helping me to move forward.

Ward's second point is great too (I wont tell you that one so it can be a surprise!) but when I read the final point my heart fluttered.

The Lord gave me a greater understanding of this statement while praying for my sister-in-law last year. She was preparing to become a blushing bride so I had been asking the Lord how to encourage her during that last stretch of wedding preparation. The Lord showed me that a wedding is not only a celebration for the two individuals becoming one, but all the hundreds of people that will come from their union. The families that will form because of those two "I do"s. It's so easy to only see the bride and the groom in that moment of flowers and makeup and fancy suits. But the bigger picture is that they are taking the first step towards creating a family that will change the world.

You can read through the whole article here. It's an really interesting read and has some great truth in it that I think more people need to hear, both before and after they're married.