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Photo by Mel Cole of I Heart Photography |
That morning, I remember waking up early after spending the night with two of my bridesmaids. I felt excited, but also tremendously peaceful. I had made the decision that my wedding day would be one absent of stress. If the cake didn't show up, it wouldn't ruin the day. If the groomsmen got orange vests instead of pink, the day would continue. Luckily nothing like that happened, but it wouldn't have been the end of the world if it had. At the end of the day, we would be married. This in itself was also a large part of my feeling of peace. That morning the stylist doing my hair and makeup asked several times whether I felt anxious or nervous. I could honestly say, "No." I felt no doubts and only happiness and peace in regards to our marriage.
While reflecting back on our wedding day, I came across the following picture our photographer took, when she pulled us aside during the reception to do a few "couple shots". The expression on my face perfectly captures the joy I felt the entire day.
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| Photo by Mel Cole of I Heart Photography |
Some people say the first year of marriage is the hardest. There are certainly a lot of challenges I didn't anticipate, made even more complicated by an international move only months into the marriage. For example, combining finances is an awkward process to begin with, but I felt even more pressure since the move left me with no income. I've always been a very independent person, and I've had to learn that sometimes it is okay to rely on someone else, both financially and emotionally. Another challenge that I've faced is developing a stronger relationship with my in-laws. I feel very lucky to have such loving in-laws who immediately welcomed me to the family, but there is an interesting mental shift between "these are my husband's parents" and "this is my family", which has gradually occurred over our first year of marriage. Being so far away from family has also meant that this shift has taken more effort in the form of emails and keeping in touch instead of just dropping in for dinner. Now, especially after their visit a few months ago, I feel much more like part of the family.
Even with these challenges, however, I wouldn't say that this year has been difficult. In fact, if every year of our marriage is filled with as much love and support as this one, I feel confident we have many happy years ahead of us. Our move to the Netherlands has forced us to grow closer, as we are each other's only family on this side of the ocean. While we have gradually incorporated into individual social circles (Mr. Traveler's baseball team and my women's group), most of our time when Mr. Traveler is not working is still spent together. We've eaten dinner together nearly every night since the move. We've explored our new home city of Utrecht. We've traveled to Switzerland, France, and just over the past two weeks to the Eastern Mediterranean (blog entries will be coming soon!) We've made day trips to Amsterdam and The Hague. We've not only shared experiences, but also learned much more about each other. If I had to define our first year of marriage in a few words, I would say full of support, full of love, and constantly growing. I feel so lucky to have married my husband one year ago today!
Happy 1st Anniversary, Mr. Traveler! I look forward to spending the rest of my life with you.
Even with these challenges, however, I wouldn't say that this year has been difficult. In fact, if every year of our marriage is filled with as much love and support as this one, I feel confident we have many happy years ahead of us. Our move to the Netherlands has forced us to grow closer, as we are each other's only family on this side of the ocean. While we have gradually incorporated into individual social circles (Mr. Traveler's baseball team and my women's group), most of our time when Mr. Traveler is not working is still spent together. We've eaten dinner together nearly every night since the move. We've explored our new home city of Utrecht. We've traveled to Switzerland, France, and just over the past two weeks to the Eastern Mediterranean (blog entries will be coming soon!) We've made day trips to Amsterdam and The Hague. We've not only shared experiences, but also learned much more about each other. If I had to define our first year of marriage in a few words, I would say full of support, full of love, and constantly growing. I feel so lucky to have married my husband one year ago today!
Happy 1st Anniversary, Mr. Traveler! I look forward to spending the rest of my life with you.
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| Taken a Couple Months Ago |
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