25 Years Ago...I became a princess and lived a fairy tale...

I didn't stand a chance....

He walked into the offices where I was working that fateful day in June of 1983 and I just remember thinking "Oh my..."

He took me to my first debutante ball, we hung out at each other's houses after work each day...

This guy was unlike any I'd known... decisive, established in what he knew he believed about things and apparently in what he wanted out of life, because after just three months of dating, he proposed...

As he tells it, "Once you know what you want, what's the point in waiting?" {he still operates like this to this day -- whether buying a car, a house, or whatever...he makes a decision quicker than anyone I know!}

So we had these printed up....

And on this day 25 years ago, this was us...

We honeymooned on Paradise Island in the Bahamas and as you can see, we spent our share of time out on the beach!

(Remember my recent post lamenting all those days spent baking in the sun...?)

Our life together had begun....we shared a condo, then in just a few years built our first house which we lived in until 2001.

We now enjoy our circa 1891 home in the country -- and sometimes I wonder if we'll end up going full circle and buying a condo once again... :)

We lived, loved, shared joys and tears (some of you may recall past posts where I've shared how we endured the loss of 3 children)

but then...

along came this angel...

She had her daddy's heart from the moment she emerged and it has been thus every since...

Can you tell??

The picture below was taken on a trip to Bubble Pond in Acadia Park, in Bar Harbor, Maine...

Not longer after our trip, I discovered a gorgeous piece of photographic art by journalist Jack Perkins of the very same spot on Bubble Pond...however, Jack had added this incredible poem to go with it -- relating the position of the mountains to the lake, to the marriage of a man & a woman.

I've added the words of that poem to this picture...

And though we don't "know it all" regarding marriage by any stretch of the imagination, I find those words to be so true. "no longer hers as only hers, or his as only his..." Give & take, forgive - forget, and most of all a large dose of daily perspective. When things seem overwhelming, remember what you have, the blessings that are so easily overlooked...

So, on this 23rd of June -- a day which for most of you is surely just another day to get to the grocery store, or see that the last load of laundry is done up -- I wanted to pause and acknowledge the importance of this day in my life.

And to wish my hubby, Doug, a very happy 25th anniversary.