Well, this has definitely been the longest I've gone without posting on the blog. I did want to use this post, late as it may be, to talk about my husband. This past Monday, Nate and I celebrated our one year aniversary by going on a date night, reliving wedding memories, and some suprisingly yummy one-year old cake In some ways, it feels like it went so fast, and we can't believe we've already been married a year. In other was, it seems like we've together forever. Regardless, Nate and I experienced a lot of "life" in our first year - we moved into a rental house, Nate turned 30, we joined a new church, we bought, renovated, and moved into our first house, and I changed jobs.

When I think back on this year, I'm so thankful for Nate and how much we've grown, both individually and as a couple. We've learned so much about each other, compromising, and loving each other well; but the most important thing I took away from our first year was the importance of good communication and laughter. There are so many things about Nate that I appreciate and love, but right now, I appreciate how much he makes me laugh. Whether it's a joke, silly face, or just something random, no matter what each day brings, I know laughter will be part of it.

For my gift to Nate, I framed our wedding vows that we wrote. It was neat to go back and read them with each other again and be reminded of the signifigance of those words:

I love you, Nate, and I know that you love me. Because of this, I desire to be your wife. For years I have prayed that God will lead me to the man that He has chosen for me, and I am confident that His will is being fulfilled tonight. Through the pressures of the present and the uncertainties of the future, I promise to be faithful to you. I promise to love, serve, and respect you as long as we both are alive. Christ told us that the wife must submit herself unto her husband as unto the Lord, and I promise to honor and submit myself to you.

I love you, Amber, and I know that God has ordained our love. Because of this, I desire to be your husband. Together we will be vessels for His service in accordance with His plan, so that in all areas of our life Christ will have the pre-eminence.  Through the pressures of the present and the uncertainties of the future, I promise to be faithful to you. I promise to love, guide, and protect you as long as we both are alive. In accordance with Ephesians 5 and with His power, I promise to show you the same kind of love as Christ showed the church when He died for her, and to love you as a part of myself because in His sight we shall be one.