"None of us marry perfection; we marry potential." - Elder Robert D. Hales
the last year and a half has been an incredible journey. it feels like we got married yesterday, but it also feels like we've been together for forever. when i think back to my mission or college or high school, those experiences feel like a lifetime ago. being married to parker has been such an adventure. i never knew that i could love someone as much as i love parker. his happiness and well-being are so important to me. i love the way he laughs with his whole body and how broad his sense of humor is. he's always laughing at a good joke. i love, love, love his smile & how extremely happy he can be. i love when he sings in the car & i love that his favorite genre of music is rap. i love that i learn something new about him every day. i love when he pulls me into a tight hug. i love that he plays with my hair without being asked & tickles my back when i ask him to. i love how supportive he is; he might not absolutely love coming to photo shoots with me, but he will come if i ask him to. there is so much i love about parker & i am so grateful for him.
the last year has not been the easiest of my life by any means. i am so grateful that God gave me parker to go through this trial with. he is so patient & loving & holds me when i cry. he always says the right things to comfort me. we have become so close through the last year's trial & while i'm not quite grateful for infertility, i am grateful for the fact that parker & i have been able to grow together. i'm grateful that we have continued to live our lives, despite our trials. i'm grateful that we have learned to love one another on a whole different level. i'm grateful that we don't have secrets from each other. i'm grateful that we are able to share our feelings with one another. i'm grateful for our knowledge of the gospel. i'm grateful for the Savior's Atonement. i'm grateful that Heavenly Father hears the prayers of our hearts when we can't find the words to speak. i'm grateful for kind friends. i'm grateful for our families who care so much & pray for us. i'm grateful for the words of modern day prophets & apostles & for the scriptures because they bring me so much peace.
peace, hope & faith have been my saving graces over the past year. there have been times in the last year that i haven't had a lot of any of those things, but every time i've been running low on peace or hope or faith, parker comes through and has an abundance of those things. i'm grateful that Heavenly Father has blessed me with the perfect husband for me. i love parker so much & i am so, so incredibly grateful for him & his faith & his hope.
while we still have a lot of learning to do in marriage, i'm grateful that i get to learn with parker. he is my very best friend & i'm so happy that i get to go through this life with him.
i already shared the story + details of our "anniversary photos" with alice cannon in my wednesday letter from this week, but we just got the photos back and I AM DEAD. they are absolutely perfect!! alice asked us if there was anything specific we wanted from the shoot and i told her that i just wanted photos of us being happy & married. and she killed it. we had an amazing time with alice & robyn and seriously can't wait to hang out with them again soon!