When we first got married, we made a tentative plan to do a big trip for every 5th wedding anniversary, finances permitting.
Somehow in a short amount of time our first five years of marriage rolled up on us fast. We decided to recreate our honeymoon by attending a different Carribean island, and choose an all-inclusive option.
I did the research, planned, saved, and anticipated a great trip and relaxation time with my husband. Since becoming parents our free time and relaxation is pretty minimal, not to mention our sleep habits.
As our trip grew closer, I started letting anxiety creep up on me. My largest fear was leaving behind our child for the first time ever. Now, we knew he would be fine but I was having a hard time with the fact this would be the first time I wouldn’t see him every day.
To make matters worse, there were warnings of TSA being a problem with long wait lines. So our early morning start began even earlier, and after flight delays, it ended up being a much longer than intended travel day. And honestly, a pretty miserable first night.
We were tired, hungry, and had no idea where we were. I was contemplating looking for earlier return flights if the next day did not improve.
Thankfully, our first full day was much better and we quickly acquainted ourselves with the resort, found a map, and all the dining locations. After a more relaxed day, we settled in and made plans for the next two days before we travelled home.
Unfortunately, it rained some on and off on the next day, which left our sunset cruise pretty cloudy, cold, and sunsetless. We at least met some interesting people and had a few laughs!
Our last day we took a private tour with a driver, and it was probably our best day, despite it raining again the entire drive to the mud baths and waterfall. Our driver was great and answered all our questions. It was the first time we actually felt like we learned about St. Lucia!
The rain stopped and we had a breathtaking view of the Pitons at our lunch stop. The rest of our day was spent relaxing by the pool and getting our bags together before our last dinner.
The next day was pretty much pack up, eat breakfast, and make our way home. Our flight was delayed again, and the flight itself was pretty warm, leaving many fanning themselves. For me, I was glad I packed extra shorts to change into and my neck fan, because if I get hot I will be throwing up. Getting sick anywhere sucks, but on a plane ranks even lower.
Trust me. Been there done that.
So, even though I felt pretty horrible the first half of the flight, I made it through and somehow the pilot made up time to get us back pretty close to our original time. We still didn’t make it home until 10PM, and my son was already asleep, but at least we were back home.
I’m blessed to say I have travelled to many places around the world. I’m blessed to say I am married to a wonderful man for five years in April.
I’m also seasoned enough to know that vacation/travel and marriage are not always amazing. Just like our recent trip, our five years of marriage has not always been complete sunshine.
There has not been one single trip I have been on that every single thing went 100% perfect. In the past five years of marriage, and the 3.5 of dating before that, my darling husband does not always say or do the right thing.
For instance, once when I was vehemently sick with the norovirus after a Thanksgiving gathering, my sweet, maniacal husband asked me if I wanted Vienna sausages to eat while my head was in the toilet, to which he still laughs at to this day. When he got the virus the next day, I don’t remember feeling very sympathetic.
The difference between trips and marriage is that while I may regret a few trips that I have taken in my life and would have been better off using that money elsewhere, my marriage is the absolute opposite.
We aren’t the perfect couple, and there are many things we can individually and together improve upon, but I am extremely grateful for the man I married. The first five years of our marriage was not entirely what I envisioned, but it actually was even better. It is not the happy ever ending, picture perfect you get from the movies. It’s real, sometimes tough, but honest and faithful. I wouldn’t trade it or Daniel for anything else in the world.
Happy anniversary to my best friend, partner, and the best man in the world! I love you!
“He answered, Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”
-Matthew 19: 4-6
Mirror, Mirror 