Our 8th Annivesary

Eight years ago, at this very moment, I was a newly wed woman. I remember standing in the foyer of the church, crying because I was now married to the man I had loved for the last nine years, never imagining that we would be able to spend the rest of our lives together. Donald and I were married on the 9th anniversary of the day we met and today we celebrate 8 years of marriage.

Everyone hopes when they get married that the world will be brighter, the days will be filled with nothing but flowers & sunshine, and life will be perfect. As much as we all wish it, that's just not the way real life is. Every marriage has its ups and downs, its good days and bad, its passion and apathy. Our is no different; although I'm certain that Donald would say he's always had the 'passion' and not the 'apathy' toward me. He is, after all, enamored with me and will readily admit so.

Throughout the years, I have learned that it's okay to love someone even when there are times you might not particularly like them. We all have our stories of things our husbands do to irritate us, drive us mad, and make us feel like wielding a frying pan. But true to the old saying, I try not to go to bed angry.

I hope this entry doesn't come across as a message against marriage or my husband; it truly is not. It's simply a statement that a real marriage is just that: REAL. And I wouldn't want to experience it with anyone other than my wonderful, handsome, romantic, sexy husband - Donald Hamilton White, Jr.

I love you, sweetheart, forever and always. Melissa

A Favorite Photograph (left) & Our First Dance