Lucky 13

I wish I had the attention span to remember how to use our old clunker of a scanner so I could show you a wedding photo.  The most striking of our photos are the ones with my bridesmaids.  Both my sisters and Jeff's.  Andrea was...14?  She looks like such a baby and THAT makes me feel like I've been married for a long time.  Also?  Jeff's hair was still brown (oh!  A dig!  Will we survive the lucky 13th year?)

We didn't get a digital camera until just before Andrew was born, a gift from far-away grandparents who wanted daily...no, hourly updates on their first grand-baby.  So I will present to you some photos from back in 2003...when we had been married only 4 years.

Here we are on our "baby-moon" to Las Vegas.  Our last childless trip.  I am about 8 months pregnant.  I don't know what Jeff's excuse was... :)  Let it be noted that he has lost about 80 pounds since 2003.

Here is one of my all time favorite photos of us.  Andrew is clearly a newborn.  Jeff looks like he has just been hit by a bus.  I am wearing Hugh Hefner-esk pj's that I have no memory of even owning.  We look SPENT.  And we had only ONE CHILD.  We didn't have to entertain a toddler or prepare food for anyone but ourselves and we could rest while the baby slept like 20 hours a day.  When I was suffering after having Michael...suffering with the newborn phase all while keeping an 18 month safe and entertaining a school-less, nap-less 4 year old...this picture used to make me LAUGH.

I also love this photo because we are sitting on our old faux corduroy, duct taped together couch that we inherited from my parents (that they inherited from my grandparents when THEY got married).  And we still had the throws from college, instead of the Lightning McQueen and unicorn ones we have now.  And the curtains!  Sheets?  No, I'm sure we paid for those bad boys. Yikes.  Better to just not have curtains, in my opinion (she says, looking at her curtain-less windows).

Finally, here is us this summer.  The closest we have to a 13 year shot.  Doesn't Jeff look hot?  Mom, don't answer that.  But seriously...he is aging well, right?  I am happy to be where we are, I've got to say.  We are in a really good, happy place.  He makes me laugh, is a good confidant, continues to be patient with me, and I just love spending time with him.  We have changed, but we are changing together somehow...13 years ago I would never have believed our mutual hobby would be weight lifting and running.  WTH?  And I try my hardest not to think about just how fast this is going.  Already at 13 years of marriage.  Slow down, life.  I am enjoying my life with this man too much to have it speed away.