The Young and the Restless

19 Years and 3 months

We celebrated our 19th wedding anniversary in June. And by 'celebrate', I mean we were both in different states and we both forgot. But there was a romantic mid-afternoon text involved. Three months later we finally found a free weekend o sneak away together. This anniversary was monumental because it's the first time we left all the kids home alone overnight. And I must say, it was awesome! Not just because it has opened up a whole new door of possibilities and freedoms, but because Kylie really stepped it up and made it such a fun weekend for them that they're practically asking us to leave again. She took them to chick-fil-a, went swimming with baby ducks in Dylan's pool and roasted s'mores, and even spent like 3 hours at the park and splash pad. I about died when she texted me a picture of the boys SWIMMING in the lake at the park. This is not just any lake, this is reclaimed cow water lake {insert at least 10 emojis}. I mean, I've got video of Maddox doing the breaststroke. The good news is, no one got sick or died and they all had a great time. AND the house was even clean. Thank you Kylie!!

While they were busy swimming in a cesspool, Jason and I were doing all the things the kids would have hated doing- hiking. We drove up to our condo for the night and managed to fit in not only one, but two hikes on our drive up. The first one was the Waterwheel trail. It was super hot, but the swimming hole looked fun for the kids so maybe we'll have to bring them back.

The next stop was Tonto Bridge. We have been here a few times, but the trail seemed so much shorter without kids! It's such a cool natural formation, I'm always in awe to see it in person.

On our way up we stopped in Payson for lunch. We decided to bypass Taco Bell and splurge for Arby's. We were joking that after 19 years of marriage we've earned an upgrade from .89 burritos. We had finally arrived. And then I spent $6 on an iceberg lettuce salad and we regretted our decision. I guess we will never be too good for Taco Bell. We made it to Pinetop that evening and enjoyed a nice quiet dinner at our favorite spot, Red Devil Pizza. So what if they got my order wrong and we had to wait another 20 minutes and Jason was done before I even started. We were in no rush, there were no kids to keep entertained and the night was still young. Besides, Ross didn't close until 11. Whoever said money can't buy you happiness ain't never been on a Ross shopping spree. Jason was about to walk out of the house that morning with one of those white hats sporting his company's logo on it that only men in their 60's wear, so we were in search of a cooler hat. And then we walked away with about $200 worth of merchandise.  We went back to the condo and tried to stay awake to watch a movie, but we're officially too old to last for an entire movie. The next morning I went for a beautiful run through the pine trees, and quickly realized that high elevation running is for the birds. We spent the rest of the day doing terribly romantic things such as installing a light kit for the fan, doing touch up paint, and ordering blinds, returning blinds, measuring blinds, cutting new blinds, re-cutting new blinds, going to Home Depot three times and finally installing blinds. Even if it wasn't the most relaxing way to spend our anniversary, it was nice getting stuff checked off our to-do list. We drove home in the dark listening to Jenn Hatmaker's audiobook and Weezer's Africa. The first one was my choice, the second one his. In case that wasn't obvious. Loved our little weekend getaway, and love the last 19 years of memories with this man. I love that Jason knows me so well, he pulls over at scenic lookouts without me asking and always scans the menu at new restaurants looking for vegetarian options for me. I love how proud he is whenever I pull the boat on the trailer, he brags to others,"that's my wife!". I love that he uses humor to diffuse anger and knows how to make even the moodiest wife or angriest teenager laugh. And as much as I hate that he tries to solve my problems instead of just listening, I can't help but love that he does always want to help and take care of any problems big or small. I loved our one spontaneous date night months ago to get froyo on the golf cart and half jokingly drive around scoping out the bulk trash for treasures. I look forward to our weekly Thai take-out and movie on the projector date nights. I love that we get obsessed over an ice cream flavor and buy it for months straight until we get sick of it. Maine Blueberry Cheesecake and Funnel Cake for the win. I love that for the past 3 years you have had the same 4 songs, and only 4 songs, on your playlist and you're still not tired of them. It makes me laugh how you're a creature of habit and have been chewing the same flavor gum for like the past 15 years. I love watching you wake surf, it's hot. I love that you will probably be 75 years old and still wearing your Quicksilver t-shirts. And as much as it annoys me sometimes, I love that you always like to go to bed at the same time. There is so much I love about you, grateful for the past 19 years and looking forward to an eternity ahead!