To my mom on her first wedding anniversary without my dad,

If God gave us one more day with Dad, I’d want him to spend it with you. Why? Because of days like today…June 2nd. The counting of the years has stopped physically, but not emotionally. My heart hurts so much on these days because there is no one but your best friend in life who understands. And I truly wish he was here for you, Mom. So, while I know today will be hard in so many ways. I hope to ease that pain with just a few of the amazing memories you’ve given me and Kelsey. Our memories won’t be those staged portraits you see on mantles (we all know Dad hated a photo shoot 🙂 ). This is how a marriage lasts, by your example:

• Always stay laughing. There was not a day you two didn’t laugh together. Humor has always been a big part of our lives and that was handed down from you both. I’m so grateful for that. I love laughing and I learned it from you two.
• Trust each other in everything. From the big things to the small, you both compromised and allowed each other to lead in decisions that shaped our family. There was no second guessing or putting each other down if something didn’t work. A true partnership formed our family unit as we know it today. Parenting, moving, purchases, careers, medical – you did it all in good faith of one another.
• Honoring the commitment. In good times and in bad, for richer or for poorer. You guys did it all together, in every circumstance, and you did it SO. DAMN. GOOD. I’m inspired daily thinking of all you went through together and never let the stress show. Just think about the last two years and how effortless you made it look on the outside. Because nothing was more important than the commitment of being there for each other.

I’m so thankful for the household you both created. I’m thankful you raised us to now recognize what a gift your marriage is to this family and to those around you. I’m thankful for you both finding each other as kids and writing letters and keeping at it. I’m thankful for your love.

Happy Anniversary to my favorite couple of all time. This is what love looks like. ❤️