Happy Anniversary!

Eleven years ago yesterday, I married my best friend. We've been through a lot together.

• Starting our new life living in a mountain cabin in Scotts Valley, CA
• College diplomas for us both
• Elementary school teaching careers
• His parent's divorce
• The birth of Snapper
• The death of my mom
• Having his youngest sister (age 13) live with us for a year
• A move to a two-bedroom duplex in Campbell, CA
• A miscarriage at 13 weeks
• A move to a two-bedroom fourplex in San Jose, CA
• Joining the staff of Campus Crusade and FamilyLife
• Raising all the monthly support our family needs to live on
• A move to a five-bedroom house in San Jose, CA
• A miscarriage at 7 weeks
• A move to a one-bedroom cottage in Aptos, CA
• Buying our first house in Little Rock, AR
• Saying goodbye to friends and family and moving to Little Rock
• Starting a new job with FamilyLife
• The birth of Pepper
• 4 1/2 wonderful years in Little Rock
• A miscarriage at 8 weeks
• My birthmom's breast cancer diagnosis
• A miscarriage at 7 weeks
• Having Matt's youngest sister (age 18 and 19) live with us for two years
• Reuniting with our friend Bev, and being involved with her as she fights leukemia
• Accepting a job with Bright Media/Campus Crusade in Orlando, FL
• Selling our house
• A six-week, cross country road trip during the lapse between selling our house and the start of our new lease
• A move to Orlando, FL
• One very miserable year of adjustment to Florida
• Starting our new job with Bright Media, which is not miserable!
• A move to Oviedo, FL
• Making the choice to adopt a child or two children from foster care
• A big surprise pregnancy and miscarriage at six weeks
• Being matched with three sisters
• Preparing to adopt those three sisters
• Countless miles of work-related travel
• Many fun visits with friends and family 
• Laughter by the ton
• A few gallons of tears
• Swim meets and track meets
• Choir concerts and pre-k parties
• ER visits
• Diamond mining and wildlife photography
• Disc golf and scrapbooking
• Puppets and children's ministry
• Three NASCAR races at the track and hundreds on the television
• An amazing circle of friends all over the country
• A loving family who we manage to stay pretty close to across the miles
• A God who is completely faithful

It has been an amazing 11 years, and I am excited for the many more that are yet to come!

P.S. We celebrated our anniversary last night by going to Sea World with our besties (our adopted family in Florida), who also have season passes. Their kids are 2 and 4. We had so much fun! We went to our favorite shows, ate barbecue, ate ice cream, and watched their Reflections fireworks show. It was so much fun! Because Matt and I work from home, we have a lot of one-on-one time, so we didn't feel the need to go out alone. The weather was perfect as the sun started to set, the kids were all happy, and the conversation was wonderful. The highlight of my evening was holding my 2-year-old nephew while he watched fireworks for the first time ever! He was delighted and amazed, and his expressions were priceless.