Young Romance.

Posted by Ashley on August 10, 2011 · 6 Comments 

(Picture above: Christmas 2008! HA!)

My husband and I are both quite childlike at heart… so it’s no surprise that we left Target the other day with glow in the dark stars in our cart. Jason found them in the dollar section and insisted that our ceiling needed a makeover. I agreed with him because hey, no one likes those popcorn ceilings anyway. From what I understand they are for acoustic purposes, you know, to cut down sound reverberation. I figure, just put fabric in the room. Throw down a comfy rug, hang curtains, and maybe add extra pillows and blankets on the couch. Sounds much more inviting to me!
Anyway, we got home and stuck those little stars up, turned off the lights, and laid down on the bed to stare at them. We were there for a long time just talking about our childhoods and the fun things we did as kids. Funny thing is, we probably would have been good friends if we’d known each other when we were that young. We liked all the same things.
It was a nostalgic hour reminiscing on the simple things in life.

While talking about how my sister and I used to spend Christmas eve, I had the best idea. I sat up and said “let’s make a fort!” He laughed at me for a while and then agreed. We hung a sheet up over the bed to make a tent of sorts and then threw a bunch of pillows and blankets inside. It was a little comfy heaven, and we didn’t take it down for a week. Any spare time we had, we’d crawl in there and talk about our day. We caught our dog Zoe sneaking in there to steal a nap a couple times. We’d call her name and her sweet little face would poke out almost as if to say “I don’t know a Zoe… who is this Zoe you speak of?”

When I was a kid, I used to dream of falling in love. Not exactly the kind of love you see in movies; you know the kind, cheesy and unrealistic. I dreamed of something bigger. I dreamed of someone who didn’t look at me strange when I broke out into song for no reason or for tripping over flat surfaces. I dreamed of someone who knew who I truly was and loved me for me, all of me. I wanted a true love with a man who loved Jesus even more than me. Somehow, someway I found that. When I thought it was impossible, and that I was going to just move to another country, open an orphanage and I would father the orphans alone. I believed they would be my only children. I let life, circumstances and deep wounds dictate to me what my future would look like. Really, what other sixteen year old girl believes she is never going to be married? Strange enough, God put Jason in my life when I was sixteen. That’s quite strange to think about now, being that we’re married at 22 and 23. I don’t remember what it was like without him in my life.
I apologize if this post is too sappy or cheesy for you, but I’m feeling a little sentimental today.
I love our childlike love, and the life we share together. For us, it’s no longer two lives living as one, but one life. That’s what marriage is. Marriage isn’t a fairytale romance, it won’t fix your problems, and it’s not perfect. There will be days you WANT to sleep on the couch. There will be days where everything that could go wrong, does. It takes serious work, fights, and tears, but in the end it’s totally worth it with the right person.
At the end of the day, there’s no one I’d rather look over and see sleeping next to me.
(Even in times we’re frustrated or angry with each other.)

Filed under Just Me · Tagged with Family, God, Love, Relationships