A Look Back

I thought that, in honor of my 5-year wedding anniversary, I would post some pictures of my little family over the years. Let's compare and contrast and see how much we've grown! (Literally - darn love handles!)

Year One, 2005-2006:

Here we are, fresh-faced, innocent newlyweds. Look how thin and lovely we are! How unconcerned with the cares of the world! How optimistic about the future!

Here we are a mere 3 months later. As you can see, we're looking a little shell-shocked. Of course, that may be more due to the family reunion we were attending than for any reason to do with our marriage.

We went mini-golfing with my sister and Ben's brother. After attempting to steal me away from Ben, my brother-in-law went on to hit my sister in the head with a golf club. On accident. Twice. Kids, this is why you should never fake-sword-fight with golf clubs!


Here we are with my aforementioned sister and our friends, Heather and PJ. We all went to the fair in Idaho Falls, and for some reason we felt inspired to purchase cowboy hats. We still have them, even though we (Ben and I, at least) have not worn them since.

At this point, in January '06, I'm pretty sure Ben was starting to wonder what he'd gotten himself into. But I got pregnant with Evie that month, so I guess he MUST have still liked me! ;)




Year Two, 2006-2007:

Ben was gone for a good chunk of that summer, when most of our photos were taken, so we'll skip ahead to September - just a few weeks before Evie was born! As you can see, Ben is still thin and lovely (aside from the ironic basketball under his shirt), whereas I am beginning to look like a beached whale.

Halloween, about a month after Evie was born. Let's face it - we have tons of pictures from this time period, but we only seem to be able to catch one parent at a time. So a compare-and-contrast set of pictures from the same evening will have to do. See? Evie likes me better. ;)

This is from right after our visit to Romania for Christmas. Ben discovered that, by marrying me, he gets to see the world whenever we visit my family! As of now, with 5 years of marriage behind us, we have gone exactly... one places. Huh. Not much of a perk after all, I guess. Joke's on you, Ben! ;)

Ben and I practicing our, "Tough Air Force Guy and Even Tougher Air Force Wife" faces.

Ben was a little grumpy and disinclined to be photographed after he broke his collar bone. That may, in part, be because I made his sling into a fun hat! ...Poor Ben.

Year Three, 2007-2008:

At Rock Canyon Park in Provo, enjoying the sun and taking pictures of our cute family! This is the only one we had of the two of us. We took it while Evie busied herself trying to figure out what the funny green stuff growing out of the ground was.



Ben and I were in a show that summer. Here we are, looking lovingly at my brother. Don't ask me why, I really couldn't say. I'm pretty sure it was my brother's idea.

My aunt, Kristi, took pictures of my immediate family (parents, sibs, etc.) by the river in Idaho Falls. While we were doing that, we got some beautiful shots of our little family, too! Aren't we adorable? :) Please note, this is the only time you'll see Ben with long hair for at least another 10 years. Enjoy it while you can.

Our apartment in Provo, February 2008. We were getting ready to go play in the snow. Of course, I'm the one holding the camera, so I'm not pictured. It's all good though, I probably wasn't so cute that day. ;)

We're such an adorable couple! And we both look wicked good in blue. :)

Year Four, 2008-2009:

For our anniversary, we got to go to Disneyland! My brother stayed with Evie while Ben and I vacationed for a week! It was kind of hard, because Evie would have loved Disneyland, but it was awesome to get some alone time. This is pretty much the only picture we have as a couple, but rest assured, we have a LOT of awesome pictures of this trip!

This is us at my aunt Kathi's house. She has a trampoline, and Ben, Evie and I all enjoy jumping on it. :) I like this picture, even though it's not terribly flattering, because our bodies make a kind of sloppy heart shape. It's like our marriage - sometimes we're sloppy, sometimes we're not looking so hot, but through it all we have a firm foundation of LOVE!

At my sister's wedding in August. Evie was a flower girl, I was the "Matron" of Honor (what a terrible word! Ugh!), and Ben was my arm candy. My sister was gorgeous, of course. I just hope she can look back on her first five years of marriage with as much joy as I do!

Pensacola, Florida! We were in Alabama for 6 weeks of training in September and October, so we took some time to visit the beach! Evie loved it, and I absolutely did, too! The sand was cool, the water was warm, and the day was perfect!

Evie's (and my) first live college football game! Go BYU! I don't remember much about it, probably because Evie fell asleep in my arms and everyone around me was standing up so I couldn't see anything... But hey, it was fun getting into the spirit of the whole thing!


Whew! What an eventful year! After this picture, though, we moved away for Air Force pilot training... and all the fun came to a grinding halt. Ben couldn't go on any trips, he was working 12-hour days, and we barely noticed our 4-year anniversary. Still, we love each other more than ever, so I can't really complain. The hard times do more to show what your marriage is made of than the good times do.

We skip ahead to March, where Ben has just completed his first solo flight (and was subsequently thrown into a shady-looking pool of water). I'm not involved in this picture or the events (aside from being the one behind the camera), but I use it as an example of why Ben won't be in many pictures for the next year. He was busy learning to fly!

Year Five, 2009-2010:

Evie and I relieved our boredom with trips to the zoo...

Vacations with family...


And having little photo shoots, where we'd practice our Derek Zoolander faces. :)


That's not to say that Ben didn't spend any time with us. He certainly did his best to make us his first priority. That, in my opinion, makes him a real man. He puts his family before everything else. What a stud! :)

Finally, he graduated! Now we get to see him a little more. Until he starts deploying, of course. ;)

The last five years have been amazing! Look how far our little family has come! We went from being dirt-poor college students living on hopes and dreams, to fully-functional adults contributing to society and raising an angel in human form. Our love has grown exponentially over the years, and I barely remember a time before Ben and I were together. It's been an incredible 5 years. Here's to 5,000,000,000,000,000 more!

I love you, Ben!

Hubba Hubba Hubby

Have I ever told you how lucky I am?

I was thinking about it today, and I can honestly say that I wouldn't trade my life for anyone else's in the whole existence of the world. Yes, I have my trials and tribulations. Yes, life is hard sometimes. Yes, sometimes I wish some things were different from the way they are. But when you get right down to it, I'm crazy lucky to have my life.

Most especially, I'm crazy lucky to have my husband.

I know what you other married ladies in the reading audience are thinking: "Well, her husband might be good, but he's not as great as my husband!" Well, I'm here to tell you that you're wrong. My husband is better. ;)

Okay, okay, it's a matter of opinion. I realize that. You may very well believe that your husband is the best in the world, and in fact, I hope you do. I hope that each and every one of you thinks your hubby is tops. Because that's the way it should be.

But still, mine's the best.

I can't believe that he married me, of all people! What was he thinking???

Anyway, allow me to illuminate why my husband is the best in the world.

1) He's handsome. Not just stereotypically, movie-star handsome, either. It goes beyond that. He has these blue eyes that you could drown in. And he's got one of those long, straight, proud Roman-esque noses. And his eyebrows have this unique curve to them, so he's got this perpetually interested, sweet, innocent look on his face. I love those eyebrows. I know, that sounds weird, but it's true. He's a little self-conscious about them, I think, because I comment on them a lot (and let's face it, eyebrows are a strange thing to comment on), but I do it because I genuinely love them. They make his whole face more interesting, and more handsome.

2) He has the world's best arms. They're nice and long, lean, and have just the right amount of muscle on them. He wraps his arms around me, and I just melt. I feel so safe when he holds me, like nothing bad can ever touch me again. His arms are strong, but gentle too. Going along with that, he's got these big, strong hands. They're also super gentle. His hands always feel so soft when he touches me. They convey his feelings perfectly, too. When he touches me, I can feel in his touch how much he loves me.

3) He's the perfect height. He's tall enough that I have to look up to see into his eyes, and stand on my tiptoes to kiss him. I like that he towers over me, it makes me feel dainty. :) Plus, when he holds me, my head rests comfortably against his chest, where I can hear his heart beating. It's a soothing sound.

4) He's an Air Force pilot! Is there a cooler profession in the entire world? If so, I haven't heard about it. It's exciting to realize that I'm married to a pilot. There are probably thousands of women in the world (probably more), that wish they could marry a pilot. It's such a cool job! He flies multi-million-dollar machines through the sky, fighting bad guys! Evil-doers, beware! ;)

5) He's a worthy priesthood holder. He's given me lots of blessings over the years we've been married. He's helped me get through difficult times with multiple blessings. When Evie gets seriously sick, he's the first one I turn to, because I know he has the power to help her get better. He has that power because he lives worthy of it. He tries his best every day to keep God's commandments and live like he's supposed to. He's a virtuous, wise, spiritual man who tries to emulate the Savior in every aspect of his life. I know that I can turn to him for counsel when faced with a problem, and he's in tune enough with the Spirit to be able to give me wise advice.

6) He's patient. We rarely fight, because he rarely gets annoyed. Even when I'm being difficult, he takes it all in stride and waits for me to calm down (and feel sheepish about things), so we can talk it out. He's patient with Evie, too. If she throws a fit, he just tells her, "You can cry if it makes you feel better" and waits for her to chill. I've never heard him raise his voice in anger. Because of his patience, I've become a more patient person as well. I haven't gotten to the same amazing level that he's at, and I'm not sure that I ever will, but I've definitely grown. I've noticed that instead of snapping at him when I'm annoyed, I stop and think about the situation first. Usually, I'll recognize what I've done wrong in the situation instead of focusing on what he did to annoy me. I'm able to let go of my anger and frustration. Usually, no conflict will arise at all. It's amazing how he's made me a better person, just by being so patient himself.

7) He's 100% loyal to me. He seriously thinks I'm some sort of goddess. If I have a bad dream about him cheating on me, or divorcing me, he just tells me that I'm crazy because that would never happen. He doesn't even look at underwear ads in magazines or at the mall. He doesn't even notice them. He only sees me. I don't think he even recognizes that women besides me really are women. He just sees them as "people." If we pass an attractive young lady at the store or on the street, he doesn't notice her. At all. She just doesn't register. He's got blinders on as far as other women are concerned, and I love that. I don't feel like I'm all that pretty, but I have absolutely no doubt that he thinks I'm the most gorgeous creature God ever created. Going along with that, he has absolutely no respect for men who do have wandering eyes. There's nothing more disgusting to him than the thought of infidelity. In this world, where adultery is commonplace - even encouraged sometimes! - he's a minor miracle. And I know that he'll have eyes for no one else but me for the rest of eternity. That's the best feeling in the world.

8) He trusts me and supports my decisions. He'll offer advice and suggestions, but when I'm in charge of something in the home, he lets me be in charge. He doesn't look over my shoulder and tell me what I'm doing wrong. He doesn't try to make me do things his way. He sees me as an equal, even as his superior in some ways (although I can't say I fully agree with him in that regard). As his wife, I'm not beneath him. I don't walk behind him. I walk beside him, as an equal partner. He's not a tyrant or a dictator. He respects my opinion, and trusts my judgment.

9) He's smart. This guy can fix a computer, or make it do things I didn't even know were possible. He barely has to study for his pilot training, because he retains information so well. He's got an amazing analytical mind. He studied engineering in college for a while before switching to linguistics. Both of those lines of study are pretty brainy. He wants to learn Arabic and Mandorin, as well as easier languages like Spanish and French. He can solve complex math problems that I can't even read without getting a headache. He's a brain, but he's also humble about it.

10) He loves our family. He treats me like a queen, and our little girl like a bona-fide princess. He's kind, gentle, patient, and loving. He makes time to play games with Evie, even when he's tired or busy. He'll stay up late talking to me, even though he's exhausted, because he knows how much I appreciate that time we have together. He works hard to support our family, but always makes sure to have quality time with us. He even chose a sim schedule at work recently that lets him be home with us all day, even though it means working until 3 in the morning. He wanted to be able to be home for dinner, and to help put Evie to bed, so he picked the more difficult schedule. One of his main reasons for joining the military in the first place was to help keep our family safe. He wanted to ensure our safety, and the safety of our county, by personally fighting to guarantee that safety. He's our hero.

Those are just a few of the millions of reasons I love my husband. He truly is a gift from God. I never imagined that such a man existed, and now I'm married to him! He's mine forever, and I am his.

See? I told you I was lucky. :)