This day, 3 years ago, at 6:43am this man and I were brought together as husband and wife for time and all eternity. Quite the step for me back then, considering at the time I didn?t feel so lucky in love and had made a youthful commitment to never marry again. But I had a feeling something was different about him and this time.

The difference? I had found my best friend. I had found the human being that I could be ME around, 100% of the time?and he still loved me. In fact, after spilling my deepest darkest fears and secrets, this man only loved me more!!! As someone who once searched to say the right thing at the right time to make people in front of me happy, I now (thanks to you, Chris Powell) have NO filter (haha). I have felt what it feels like to be honest and authentic, and have felt what it feels like to be loved for that, and I can never go back.

Chris and I tiptoed around the word love for 6 months after knowing we were in love. Instead, we found a much more fitting and powerful word for how we felt about each other, that we still use to this day. ?I appreciate you SO much,? is what we say. And it?s the doggone truth. I do appreciate the person he is on every level ? far beyond his insane hotness, believe it or not (which I considered a ?con? when I met him!). Chris is a person of honesty, integrity, values, character, humility (SO humble!!!), kindness, hard work, and determination. I knew I?d never find anyone else like him ? he?s one of a kind!

Three years now ? I?m sure we are like babies compared to some! But with so much in our lives, marriage isn?t easy. Marriage isn?t made to be easy and is full of benefits and costs. Thankfully, we see that the benefits of this once-in-a-lifetime union far outweigh the costs. When times get tough for us, we simply remind ourselves of the tattoo on our ring finger (a diamond ring seemed so unpractical to me when we married, especially because we were still living with my parents and making very little $$!). His ring says ?my best friend? in my handwriting, and my ring says ?my best friend? in his handwriting. Reason? Because we have seen marriages come and go, but best friendships like ours are a made for an eternity. It is a reminder that above ALL ELSE, we are BEST FRIENDS – – we ask ourselves, ?how would I treat my best friend in this situation?? Oftentimes, we treat our spouses differently?especially when they nag :-). This helps us put our priorities in order and remember why we appreciate each other so darn much.

Thank you to my best friend for loving the root of who I am. I know without a shadow of a doubt that no matter what happens to my face, body, mind over time ? because we all age ? you will always love and ?appreciate? my soul, and I will yours too. I?m blessed, grateful, lucky, happy, in love?to infinity and beyond.

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