Reasons I'm Glad Chad's Mine

For 10 of the last 12 months Chad and I have been in counseling.  We started with couples counseling and then each moved into individual counseling.  While our reasons for going into counseling are vast and quite personal, there were moments in the very beginning where I questioned my marriage for the first time ever.  Chad and I had grown apart and were not communicating.  We both had trust issues.  I had grief and a host of other personal issues I had not dealt with.  Chad had anxiety and a host of other personal issues he had not dealt with.  Our first couples counselor was awful.  Had we stopped with him, I have no doubt our marriage would have ended.  But a good thing about Chad and me is that we are both pretty stubborn and persistent.  We switched to a different couples counselor and continued to make strides.  The biggest positive change for us was when we both decided to start seeing individual counselors.  I remarked early on that while the road was long and tough and marked with more bad days than good, that I had a feeling that one day we would look back on this time and realize that we had made it to the other side, that  the good times would one day outweigh the bad. 

Today, Chad and I celebrate 8 years of marriage and I have no doubt that today my marriage is better and stronger than it ever has been.  I wouldn't trade those bad days for anything, because they remind me of how sweet my life is now and how strong and resiliant Chad and I are.

Reasons I'm Glad Chad's Mine:

1.  On April 24, 2004 Chad made me the happiest wife ever. 
Our wedding day is by far the happiest day of my life.

2.  Chad helped me create these two gorgeous boys and he continues to be an amazing father every day.

3. Chad believes in tradition.  We have photos on these steps from every time we visit Trier, Germany.  The people in the photo with us might be different, but the tradition lives on. 

4.  Chad is strong, both emotionally and physically and he's not afraid to let our children soar.

5.  Chad can act like a kid when it's appropriate, and even when it's not.

6.  Chad loves Disneyland as much, if not more than a 4 year old, who's seeing it all for the first time.

7.  When Murphy the Dragon didn't show his face at Fantasmic our first night at Disneyland (2011) Chad was just as upset as Riley.

8.  Chad can photo bomb with the best of them (just be glad he isn't flipping off the camera in this one!)

9.  Chad hiked Diamondhead with me and even though he hated my guts the entire way up, he still took this picture of me being all proud of myself, and he vowed to make our next trip to Hawaii even better.

10.  Chad poses in aprons my Memaw makes him and he also loves his large griddle so much that he taught me to love it even more than him.

11.  Chad was so excited to take Riley to his first Cowboy Game and is excited everytime he gets to go to a game, whether he's with friends or family.

12.  In the midst of our marriage being on the rocks and during some of the worst times, Chad coached Riley's soccer team and did the most amazing job.

13.  Chad stays in touch with old friends and keeps up friendships across the distance, so much better than I ever do.  He truly cares about his friends, even if their common life circumstances change and they are in the army and deployed to Afghanistan.

14.  He goes on family photo shoots where there are "posed" photos, even though he hates "posed" photos, and he acts like he likes it.

15.  He takes our TV apart to remove a sensor and fixes the annoying channel flipping our TV was doing.

16.  He changes my flat tire after I run over a rake in the garage, while simultaneously grilling burgers for us and friends to eat for dinner.  He then also takes my car to get the new tires I ordered and then takes it to a totally separate place to get my car aligned.

17.  He helps me take our "dirt" backyard from this.....



to this!!!!!

18.  And then he spends 3 hours researching lights for our new backyard and spends an afternoon hanging them from the trees to surprise me for our anniversary.

I could continue this list for ever and ever.

Chad, you are my soulmate.  You've always been "the one."

You are my best friend.  The best father to our children.  The best spouse for me.

Happy Anniversary.

I love you.

and it doesn't hurt that you're pretty cute too!