Otherwise engaged...: Eight years!

Once you're married are you still allowed to celebrate your dating anniversary? Is it weird that we still do? We don't go all out, we usually just go on a date and call it a night. We don't generally exchange gifts or anything, but we still want to at least acknowledge the day that initially brought us together.

Today, my husband and I celebrate EIGHT YEARS of togetherness. Eight. Holy moly. We met when we were eighteen years old. We were both just barely graduated from high school, fresh, shiny new adults trying to pretend like we knew what we were doing. We were both working for a retail store, same store but different locations. We met when his friend worked at the same branch as I did, and he had come to pick said friend up from work. I knew it was love after our very first conversation:

Brandon to his friend: Okay I'm going outside to smoke, meet me outside.
Me: Ew, nasty.
Brandon: It's not like I'm trying to impress you.
Me: It's a good thing, too.

Ahhh love was in the air. Our second interaction a went slightly better. He came to cover a shift at my branch and we spent the entire shift chatting, him letting me poke him in his freshly broken nose (he was 18 and super tough, guys!), and letting me draw tattoos on his arm with a sharpie. That time, there really was something in the air. We hung out a few days later and were pretty much inseparable after that. I'd also like to happily report that he no longer smokes, because I still find it gross.

Eight years of togetherness, three years of marriage, and two babies later, I still kinda love him. I'm very blessed to call him my husband, and I thank God regularly for bringing us together. I wouldn't choose to walk through life with anyone else by my side.