Lucky #7

7 happens to be my favorite number.  Ever since I was 7.  When someone asked me what my favorite number was, and I said 7 (because I was 7) but when they called me out on saying it was 7 just because I was 7, I denied it.  So then when I turned 8, I had to prove that 7 hadn't been my favorite number just due to my age, so I continued to say my number was 7.  And thus it has been every year since.

So if the number 7 has been my favorite number for the past 25ish years, I guess I have a pretty good relationship with the number 7.  7 has never let me down.  7 has always been there for me.  7 is good to me.

Which is good news because juC and I have just officially entered our 7th year of marriage.  And if my experiences with the number 7 have been any indication, our 7th year of marriage is going to be a good one!  Maybe the best yet??!!

It's kind of crazy because 7 doesn't really sound like a lot.  To those that have been married for many, many more years, we are just getting started.  But for us, 7 years has brought us a lot.

We've owned 2 homes.  We've had 4 different cars.  juC changed careers.  I've had 3 different jobs.  And we've had 3.5 kids.  We most definitely haven't spent our 7 years in wedded bliss stagnantly!

I also recently realized how sentimental I am when it comes to some of the things that mark the beginning of our marriage.

The morning of our wedding day, there was a little bit of rain.  juC bought a nice big, umbrella that morning for the rain.  For nearly 7 years, that umbrella has been by my side.  Each time I used it, a reminder of the day it was bought, bringing back lovely memories.  And a few months ago, I went to use it and...nothing.  The umbrella would no longer extend out.  Most people would toss a broken umbrella in the trash, but I just can't seem to bring myself to do it.  Every time it rains, I attempt to use it again...in the hopes that it's magically healed itself and works now.  No such luck.

We also got a spatula when we got married.  The sort of spatula you use to scrape the sides of a bowl.  It was a very basic one from Target.  Metal handle, red spatula.  Nothing fancy.  But it was with us since the beginning.  The number of cookies and cakes that that spatula has aided the production of over almost 7 years is innumerable. I couldn't help but think of us first acquiring that spatula at the beginning of our eternity together each time I used it.  And a couple of months ago, while Jud was using it to mix something that was getting too thick, the tip of the spatula broke.  I nearly shed a tear when it got tossed in the trash.  (Maybe I'll blame pregnancy hormones for that.)

Over the past 7 years of marriage we have laughed more times than I could ever count.  No one makes me happier than juC and no one makes me madder than juC.  We've learned how to be married.  We've learned how to be adults.  We've learned how to be parents.  We've learned how to sacrifice and how to work together.  We've accepted (for the most part) each others faults.  And we've done our best to be strong where the other may have weaknesses.

I often think that of all the people in all of the world that I could have married, no one was made more perfectly for me than juC was.  He loves me, imperfections and all.  He is more patient with me than I think any other human being could be.  He puts up with more from me than anyone else is capable of.  And he is just...the perfect person to be at my side.

It's only been 7 years, but if the rest of eternity looks anything like the past 7 years have, we're good to go!

**Photo credit, Thomas Photographers