30 Years Ago today

Thirty years ago today, I married my best friend. 

The boy I met in Junior High and started dating at the age of 16.  We were 20 years old and about to embark on the best adventure of our lives. 

Today, I wake up and am planning to go get my hair done, my nails done, put some makeup on, and then put on a pretty dress for our dinner date tonight.  Then after our dinner date,  we will spend the night at a hotel in the same city where we spent our Wedding night 30 years ago.

30 years and so much has changed and yet so much is the same. 

The "same" is that my husband is still my best friend.  The "same" is that I still feel like that 20 year old bride, getting ready for a date with her soon to be husband.  The "change" is that I don't look like that 20 year old bride any more, nor does my husband look the same.  We have graying hair, our bodies are not as lean as they were 30 years ago, and we have life lines etched into our faces.  But the most important "change" is that after 30 years, my love for my husband continues to grow stronger, and I can honestly say, that I love him even more today, than I did on  July 2, 1983 Thirty years ago.

So, today as I get ready for our Anniversary date night, This 50 year old woman, staring back at me in the mirror is no longer 20,  but she still feels like that bride to be.  I am giddy, anxious and excited to be getting ready for a date with my husband.  Hoping that when he sees me, he sees his bride of 30 years with the same look of love and anticipation that I saw on his face as I walked down the aisle so many years ago.

 So much has changed, yet so much is the same, but if I had to go back 30 years and do it all over again, I wouldn't change a thing!

You are still my best friend Donnie Naugler.  Thank you for the best 30 years of my life so far, and I look forward to many more years of loving you.  Happy Anniversary