My Friend Ann

Last weekend was so great.
I saw my friend, Ann.
My best friend, actually.

Ann lives in Thailand.  Which is awesome because she has a happy life where she gets to do really important work, and is right in the middle of God's will.  And which also sucks, because it's been a year and a half since I've seen her, and Skype and Facebook are fine and all, but there is nothing like spending time with your best girlfriend.

Would you believe last weekend my best friend met my husband for the first time?  It felt so strange.  Because it kind of feels like Michael and I have been married forever.  But it's only been 2.5 years (as previously discussed) and Ann has been in Thailand for 3 years.

There were desperate ploys to bring her home for our wedding, but it just wasn't possible. And Michael and I had our little internet romance, then our long distance dating thing going on, and Ann and I lived in different cities anyway, so they didn't actually meet face-to-face until last weekend.

It felt like we all went way back, though.  Which I think is a good thing.

After dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, Ann spent the night at our place, then we road tripped it to Roanoke.  Roanoke is a special place for both Ann and me.  We were roommates there about 10 YEARS AGO, WHAT? while I had my first job out of college, and Ann had her second job out of college.

I was a different girl then.  I didn't cook. Didn't clean.  Wasn't responsible with my money.  But I had great clothes! Haha. And a cat.  Looking back, I was definitely not the best roommate, but somehow, we became best friends anyway.  We hooked up with another friend and spent the day going all around - to lunch, to the school where Ann used to teach, to get ice cream, to the movies (we saw "The Vow"), to dinner, then we spent the night with a family that is like family to both of us, and we stayed up until 4:00am talking!!  

The next day, we were both exhausted, but refreshed at the same time.  Well, I guess I technically speak for myself, but I think Ann felt the same way. 

Here we are with Ann's Aunt Joyce.  True story: I saw Ann in Myrtle Beach a year and a half ago. Then, she gave me some gifts to give to Joyce.  Um... well, I gave them to Joyce outside of the Cheesecake Factory.

Mission accomplished.

If your best friend lives in the same town, or state, or time zone, or country as you, I'm jealous of you.  Just so you know.

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Two And A Half Years

2.5.
Today, we have been married exactly two and a half years.
We like to celebrate the little things.
Why not?

In fact, Michael is better than I am at remembering our "Monthaversary."
He texted me this morning, "U know what today is?"

In some ways, it feels like 2.5 years have FLOWN by.
In other ways, it feels like we've been married forever.
I'm sure a lot of married couples feel that way.

I'm no math whiz, but 2.5 is 10% of 25, no?
So, look at that!
We are still new at this... but we are getting the hang of it!

2.5 is a good place.
We've found our groove.
We can communicate (generally), we are best friends, we dream together, and are looking forward to so much together.

I woke up in Ohio this morning, and now I'm in DC, to cover Super Tuesday tonight. By the time I get home it will technically be tomorrow.
So, Babe, Happy 2.5!
I love you so much.
I'm so glad we took that chance, that long distance relationships do work, and that you moved here from Texas and now I can see you every time I come home.
It's my favorite thing about coming home.
Can't wait to be in your arms tonight.

Cheers.

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Letters to a Paralyzed Husband: Be a Safe Place

When your partner married you they probably said something to the effect of, "in sickness and health, until death us do part." That was a big promise. Your disability really puts that commitment to the test. Every day you are faced with a type of "sickness." Yeah, it stinks to call your disability a sickness, but it is. Your spouse has taken on a lot.

The Bible encourages men to consider our wives as "the weaker vessel." I seriously do not like that interpretation. Instead, I consider my wife as precious and fragile. Just like fine china or a porcelain figurine she is something I cherish and value. I want to protect her and treat her with care. That's work for a guy.

Guys relate differently than ladies. We are tough. We are  gritty. We are downright mean. I'll confess that I don't always do well. All too often I will say something insensitive then excuse it with, "I was being funny." Apparently not too funny.

Sometimes I do pretty darn good, though. There are specific times I am careful to be extra sweet and supportive: as we turn in and during that extra-sensitive monthly time. Every night Dana curls up on my shoulder as we turn in and we talk about the day. Some times we laugh; some times we pray; some times we get into a deep conversation;  but it's our nightly routine. Then there are those monthly times when I'm extra sweet because I know my wife needs extra grace.

Despite my failures I have built a foundation of trust for my wife. Some times I do things that undermine that trust and have to repair my reputation. Other times the damage comes from something outside ourselves that shakes that trust. Again, I rebuff and shore up her faith in me with reassurance.

Our relationship still gets stronger. Dana knows I'm always in her corner. She knows she has a safe place to go when when the storms hit. We are a team. Nobody will ever be more important than her. Nobody will come between us.

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Get Ready For Your Face To Melt Off Due to Extreme Cuteness

I was just playing around online, and ended up in my Photobucket account, which I haven't touched in years.

And I came across this.

o.m.g.
I want to shrink him back down.
Googling how to do that. Now.

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Saturday Morning Post

Good morning, and Happy Saturday, y'all.  I woke up at 7:30 this morning.  It's kind of early, but I might just write this, enjoy my cinnamon toast and my fresh coffee (we are still rocking the Christmas Blend here at the Ritter house), and snuggle back up to Mr. Wonderful and go back to sleep.

Because I can.
And I know that it won't always be that way.

I've been reading "Jesus Calling," in the mornings.  This week, I found out there is an app for it!  I don't need the app, because I have the book on my Kindle app, but you need to get it.  Seriously, the entries will take you like 3 minutes to read, and it is 3 minutes so well spent!

Speaking of apps, I heard of another app this week that I tried called "Sleep Cycle."
It's pretty neat.  You turn it on, plug your iPhone in, and lay it glass-down on your bed as you sleep.  Then, it wakes you up close to your alarm time (never after) when you are not in a deep sleep cycle.  It also analyzes your sleep for the night.  I've used it for 5 nights now and I have come to two conclusions.

1. I suck at sleeping.
2. I don't sleep long enough.

But, I already knew both of those.

At different times over the past week, our washer, then our dryer, broke.
They're fixed now.
And there's a mountain of clean clothes and towels and sheets on the chair that is approaching my height of 5 feet tall.
Mr. Wonderful is going to have his work cut out for him today.

What do you guys think of the new blog design?  I've been playing with it this week, using Picnik.  Picnik is going to shut down soon, so I'm trying to get as much out of it as I can before that happens.  I also made the buttons over to the right.  We're not watching as much TV in the evenings (nothing other than news) so I've had time to play around with it.

No deep thoughts streaming from me on this Saturday Morning Post. I hope that's okay.
I'm looking forward to a restful day today, cooking meatloaf and mashed potatoes for my favorite Wounded Warrior, and possibly making strawberry muffins.  We'll see on that last one.

Ugh. I have to go check on that washer. It's beating itself up again.

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Share the Love

Today I finally scratch a big "to do" off the blog to do list.
I finally made us a FAQ page.  Check it out, and as always, let us know if you have any questions.

Also, I don't know if you've noticed, but I've been having some fun designing buttons and such for the blog.  Please feel free to grab the image above and share the love! :)

It's Friday, y'all.
Yippee.

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