Good morning friends! As I sit here with coffee in a mug and still a little tired, I am thinking over the last 7 years and can't believe how it's flown. There are moments that we get to slow down and savor but other large chunks of time are almost missing from memory. I think of the optomistic 24 year old I was on the day I said I do and it makes me smile to think of her. I say "her" because it almost doesn't seem like that was me. I still see glimpes of her on some days but so much has changed.

God has brought us through so much in the last 7 years, with everything from joys and hurts to triumphs and defeats. It's amazing how a spouse brings a stability to your life, that someone to be on "your team" to always be rooting for you! There are so many things I could say about Matt today, I really wouldn't even know where to start, so I thought instead to write a few "confessions" of things I wish I have learned since our "I-do" day! These are not of all equal importance or anything, just a few items of wisdom I have picked up.

1. You are never getting any younger or thinner honey, so enjoy who you are in your season of life :) I wasted a lot of time worrying about physical insecurties when I was younger that seem so silly now!

2. Go to bed with a clean kitchen sink (nothing in it), it really will make the morning better.

3. Be your spouses biggest cheerleader! If you aren't the biggest cheerleader, who will be?! You should always cheer them on and don't miss an opportunity to share their gifts and strengths with others.

4. Make an effort to truly understand and love your new in-law family, it will reap you a deeper relationship with your spouse. By making an effort to understand the family your spouse has come from, you will "get" more of how they have come to be the person you love. It's also wonderful to have a whole new group of people to love and call family! It's especially good too when you have kids and already have a solid relationship with your in laws.

5. Learn how to cook. I have to say a lot of my cooking skills have blossomed. I was a fairly basic cook when we got married but I gained an adventurous spirit in the kitchen and it has paid off! I make all sorts of different meals now that I would've never thought of when I was first married. It's ok though if this one takes time, becoming a wife is overwhelming enough, don't feel bad if you eat mac n cheese for a while. Just keep trying to get better over time with cooking and you will find what works for you!

6. Learn how to say "I was wrong." Humility goes a long way in life and marriage. Our first inclination is always to say "told you so" or "I am right" but sometimes we really just are wrong and need to say it!

7. Take care of yourself physically. We under estimate how deep it runs when we aren't taking care of ourselves with healthy food (see # 5), exercise, sleep, etc. I negelected myself deeply when we were new parents, which is sort of common, but I paid the price for a while. Find ways, even if just small, to make sure you are caring for yourself and your spouse physically.

8. Laugh a lot together or else you will cry. Laugh at the crazy or bad sometimes, you just have to or you might be reduced to a puddle of tears instead. We have had some hard times with circumstances outside our control lately and we have to keep laughing to get through it!

9. Make your bed, it just looks nice and feels cleaner.

10. Wait a few years to have kids....because kids make life crazy :) I don't have much more on that subject because we are still in the thick of it and wondering how we will come out on the other side!

I am so blessed to have such a wonderful man to call my husband. We certainly are not without our trials but we are so thankful to be facing life together!

On our honeymoon in Punta Cana, DR 7 years ago! Just little skinny babies :) Haha...Happy anniversary honey!

Emily Troutman Photography