Two are halves of one.

"one is not half of two, but two are halves of one. " ee cummings

Ever wonder how I met this handsome man? Well, lucky you, I wrote a blog post about that! Read it here

As of August 7, 2015 at sometime in the evening...6ish? my Jimi and I have been married for 5 years.

5 years. A whole handful.

I'd be lying if I said it was easy. I'd also be lying if I said it wasn't completely worth it.

This fella knows me better than anyone in the world. He's my best friend. He's the person I love most and the person who makes me the most insane. He knows how to love me best and how to hurt me worst. And I wouldn't have it any other way.

I'm not going to say we've got it all figured out...cuz..yeesh. Not even close, but we've learned a lot of things over these past 5 years.

Things like:

1. Jen always has to make the bed before sleeping in it again. Always. No matter what.

2. Jimi's never gonna turn those shirts right-side out before putting them in the wash.

3. Sleeping apart never makes things better (unless someone is sick. cuz...eww.)

4. Brushed teeth are infinitely better than unbrushed.

5. Love is always an option.

6. Bitterness is also always an option. Though never a good one.

7. Real forgiveness never has a "but..."

8. Defensiveness hurts others. Including the defender.

We're beginning to understand what real intimacy actually looks like. It doesn't just mean that Jimi knows how to love me and make me feel loved. It also means that he knows how to hurt me. Like deep. Real deep at the soul level.

We've had to learn to trust that God can heal a broken heart and a wounded soul. We've had to be willing to be deeply hurt, while at the same time choosing to believe the best.

I know that I've hurt Jimi. I've purposefully said cruel things. But he continues to lead me in intimacy and trust. To push me toward God and to not fight back.

That's why I love him. I love him so much it hurts sometimes. I know loving me hurts too. We've both got our sharp edges, but I suppose that's how we sharpen each other.

God's refining those sharp spots in both of us, and I hope he never stops.

Jimi is not the man I married 5 years ago. Just like I'm not the woman he married. We've taken on new identities: wife and mother, husband and father, Beloved and lover.

Here's to all the years, baby. And then some. Let's get reallllly OLD together.