excuse me while I ramble on a bit

At this season when there is a flurry of present buying and gift making and baking and parties to plan and to attend life gets kind of crazy.

Also for us this is a season of getting the house ready to sell, and trying to decide what to buy in our new location. Both these events, while wonderful and fun are also stressful. Read: $$

Beloved and I have different spending habits, or desires I guess. I always want to spend more on Christmas than he does, a lot more.

He wants to spend more on houses than I do. Well sort of. We both like big nice houses, but come on..who doesn't? He feels more of a need for a big lot than I and has more requirements.


The home we presently live in was all his idea. We had a much smaller lot, with a smaller but still adequate home on it and he really really really wanted land. Eventually we bought this home and while I haven't loved the land. I have really really loved the pool and it's been nice to have space. Space to have company over, space for our family to spread out. I've gotten used to it and kind of want to keep it. All though heating all this space is an issue and cleaning all this space isn't so fun :) We have enjoyed sharing our pool with friends in the summer and having large parties through out the years

Still we're having a hard time deciding and one of us is getting fatigued with all the conversation about it and the other frustrated that he is "doing all the work", which means looking at houses on line and floor plans.

So, it's a good time to look back to happy carefree days when we just met (11 years ago this month) and were dating and not sharing a bank account :)

Top picture, taken in my parents yard, we were there for dinner maybe...I'm just guessing. He must have just gotten off of work and I just finished plowing the back 40. I don't know but our outfits sure don't coordinate! Look how skinny we were. I, of course, thought I was fat but I'd trade in a heart beat now!

Next photo, shortly after we got engaged we went on a ski trip with a bunch of Beloved's colleagues. They rented a huge house, there were tons of people and sleeping bags everywhere. We skied (me rather pitifully, him much better), went out to eat, walked in the snow and got lost. I wasn't paying attention because I didn't know I needed to. It turns out my sense of direction is better so now I always do and as a result have turned into the back seat driver I never wanted to be but it is necessary in our case. It was fun and so much snow! I remember walking back to the house one night and the sky was clear and shining with millions of stars and it was kind of light with the moonlight relecting on the drifts of snow and the air was crisp and clean. It was beautiful and I was awed by it, and happy, and looking forward to a happy life together.

Next: engagement party in Ohio. I think this was in April and we flew back to meet all the family and friends and had a huge party. It was very nice.

Last one, the night before our wedding. Both families went out to eat at a restaurant whose name now escapes me, but it was fancy and fun! We were very excited. He was a hottie (still is, actually now he's even more distinguished looking with a little gray in his hair and a few stress lines on his face! (it hasn't been easy for the poor guy to be married to me)

So we press forward, grateful for the good times and happiness and enough money to worry over. I am grateful that he is a hard worker, that he's smart and I don't have to help kids with math homework, that he always wants to do what's right. Sticking it out through the harder things. The piles of laundry I never finish, the angst of raising children, someone's grouchyness, $$$. The good with the bad, forever.

Our honeymoon to Kauaii! That was sooooooooooo fun and relaxing and lovely. (Even when I made him buy matching muumuu and shirt combos that were pretty dorky!) We need to go back there :)