Today was a very special day. For starters, Janet and I are celebrating 14 years of marriage today! Janet is a truly amazing woman; I respect her, I admire her, I love her. I am so very thankful for her! Every year when our anniversary comes up, we make a point to sit down and repeat the vows we made to each other on the day we were married.
I Dan, take you Janet, to be my wife. I join with you to share all that is to come. I will be faithful to you as long as God gives me life. All that I am, and all that I ever hope to be, is yours. I accept you without reservation as my wife. I promise to love you and honor you, be true to you always, in sickness and in health, in poverty and in wealth, in my thoughts and in my speaking as long as my life shall last.
We wrote these vows ourselves, drawing from several others we had seen and heard, and we took the time to memorize them so that during the ceremony we could just say them straight, instead of repeating chopped up phrases after the minister. I’m glad we did that, and I’m glad we still do. And now we begin what is sure to be an amazing 15th year!
Today was also special because this evening we finally were able to bring Carolyn home from the hospital, and tonight we are finally ALL home together. It’s been six and a half weeks since the girls were born. Elizabeth came home exactly one week ago, and this week has perhaps seemed like the longest week of all. People kept asking us how it felt to have one of our girls finally home, and I had a difficult time answering that question. Of course, in one sense, it was wonderful — it was like we’d taken a big step and were halfway there! But in another sense, it was kinda rotten — halfway there just underscores the fact that you’re NOT there at all until you’re finally actually really truly THERE. I dunno, it’s a little hard to explain, I guess. It was like being tugged in different directions, whereas before Elizabeth came home our attention was much more focused.
In any case, the difficulties of being separated from our girls for the last month and half are now behind us, and we’re finally all HOME together. Amen!
Carolyn and Elizabeth, home together
Now we can get started tackling all the difficulties yet to come! Woo-hoo!
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