Yesterday was Sam’s and my 11 year anniversary of our first date. It is interesting that on our 10 year anniversary, Barack Obama was elected president, but our 11 year was something of a reverse day, because we didn’t get to see a whole lot of each other, and it was a hairy, crazy day. Still, it was special, because it was our day. We got to sit down together to learn about a couple that we are going to be coaching (premarital), and they are about the age we were when we were getting ready to be married, so it brought back a lot of memories of us at that age, and it was a good thing!

But it’s great to think about being together such a long time, because many relationships don’t last even that long, and I am really glad we have both committed to each other and to working out problems and not trying to run from them. I’m confident that we have a solidly founded marriage, and because it is founded on a mutual love of Jesus and each other, I think it would take a lot for something else to destroy it. I believe that the marriage contract in a Christian home is not just between a couple, but it is a three-way contract with God as well. I recently heard about old friends whose marriage collapsed last year, and it broke my heart, because when I knew them, they were both solidly Christian. I know if you ignore the part of the vows you made to God, the rest can dissolve quickly if you don’t work at it. There are certainly many non-Christian marriages that last forever, and I often wonder what their secrets are, but a solid foundation of choosing to love when it isn’t easy (which hopefully isn’t often) is one of the keys to a lasting loving marriage.

And now I realize that I’m going to be 30 in less than 6 months, actually less than 5, but who’s counting? I am excited about it, not worried,  because I don’t mind getting older. I don’t mind because I’ve been mistaken for a much younger person twice in the last week. Yes, that feels good. I had a little boy ask if I was my daughter’s sister (so sweet!), and a friend’s sister thought I was 20. After having two kids and not feeling like my body is what it was even 5 years ago (okay, 5 and a half), it felt really good that someone else still saw youth that I don’t always feel. And I’m only 29! (for the FIRST time, mind you.)

But that brings me to my birthday. I am excited, as I said, so I am planning on having a really fun, crazy birthday bash, incorporating the last 30 years of pop culture into the theme of the party, the cake, and the decorations. I’m inviting lots of people, and the part that is most exciting (to me, anyway): there’s going to be a contest and people will win actual prizes of monitary value. What might the contest be? Well, I’ve decided to throw a costume party where you have to come dressed as an icon or event that happened in the last 30 years. From 1980 to 2010, the best costumes will win something (and I’ll be buying the prizes, so my costume doesn’t count). So if you are reading this and you are in the Columbus area, and you want to come to my party, start thinking now of a really creative idea for a costume! You never know if yours might be the most creative!