Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad

I was sitting in a marriage workshop at the Women's Forum today and realized that today is my parent's

40th wedding anniversary!

Wow, that really snuck up on me and I feel totally guilty for not doing something great and milestone worthy to celebrate it. And since I'm 4 hours away and too late with a card or gift, I'm going to blog about them. It's the best I can do, I guess, at the last minute. (Followed by a phone call as soon as I get this post up - sorry Mom and Dad!)

My parents have one of the best marriages I know. I think they've had some not-so-great moments and rough patches over the years, (who hasn't!) but these days they've really got this whole marriage thing down pat.

My Dad has had both of his legs amputated due to diabetes and is on dialysis 3 days a week and has a host of other serious health problems. Mom is his primary caregiver and takes better care of him by herself - at 66 years old, no less - than a hospital staff has ever been able to do. And she's happy to do it. And Dad doesn't go very many minutes of his day without telling her and/or anyone within earshot how wonderful she is and how much he loves her. In fact, he's always done that. I don't know of another husband who's so good at telling everyone he comes in contact with that his wife is the best woman in the world.

When we were kids, he would come through the door at night and yell, "Where's your beautiful mother?". Everyday. I always knew that I wanted a husband who loved me as much as my dad loved my mom, he was a great example in that way for my sisters and me.

And Mom really is the best wife in the world - in the top five, at the very least. If I told you all the reasons why, you would totally agree with me, but there just isn't enough time left in the day to do that. Suffice it to say that she is unfailingly kind and selfless and loves Dad unconditionally. She sees only the good in him, which is something that if every wife (and husband) did, the divorce rate would drop to like .001%.

When they were dating, they both received a strong spiritual witness that they should get married and it's helped keep them strong over the years.

Here they are as a young married couple - I love this picture.


And when my sister and I were little. That's me on Mom's lap. (I never noticed before, but Mom and I must have had the same barber.)


This one was taken a couple of years ago and I put it in a scrapbook album I made for them for Christmas that year.


And these were taken last year at our little family reunion. Dad had just had an eye surgery. I could have taken the bruises out in Photoshop, but I decided that it was better to remember them as part of his life.


With all their grandkids - July '08


So happy 40th Anniversary Mom and Dad - YOU MADE IT!

Thanks for everything you've done for me and for setting such a good example of how to keep working at a marriage and how sweet it can be. I love you!

(Oh, and that reminds me, my 40th birthday is 9 months and 3 days from now.)

(Do the math.)