eight

Matt + I celebrated our 8th anniversary together yesterday!  It's amazing just how fast 8 years goes by.  This year brought us many changes and challenges, but continues to bring us closer together and made life even more wonderful.We spent several months living with my parents.We moved into our second home during one of the busiest times of the year for both of us.We were introduced to life with a #threenager.We both had major career changes - Matt beginning a new teaching position (same school though) and I resigned as the head volleyball coach at my school.We experienced our second pregnancy and the birth of our second child.We adjusted (and still are) to life as a family of 4.We went through our first refinancing experience on a house that was only 6 months old.We finished out a very difficult school year for both of us.We purchased a new and bigger car.

Bye-bye Corolla... Hello, new RAV4!

And now we are doing our best to enjoy our summer while getting some much needed things finished on our house.  (Light fixtures are always a good thing.)I have needed Matt more this past year than I have ever before.  For me, stress and anxiety has gotten in my way and has caused me to break down more than I care to admit.  But, I am very thankful to have such a wonderful man to turn to, who tolerates my craziness, and who will talk me off a ledge.  He knows my needs and what is best for me sometimes more than I do.  He is willing to push me out of my comfort zone, and for that, he has made me a better person.Matt, I hope you know how much I love you.  I know that there are times when I really suck at communicating to you my feelings, wants, and needs, but I am thankful that you don't need me to tell you to understand.  Thank you for being my best friend, my soulmate, the love of my life, and my husband.  I thank God for you every day!  We celebrated our anniversary with another year of dinner, beer, and ice cream. We had dinner at Bridge Tap House, which is a Dave Bailey restaurant (my favorite STL restauranteur) known for their extensive beer menu. Matt had the Okie by Prairie Artisan Ales (which was awesome) and I started with a Boulevard Lemon Ginger Radler, followed by a Japanese Espresso Stout. Both were good but Matt's took the top ranking. (If you are on Untappd, add me as a friend!)    I decided to be adventurous for dinner and ordered the mushroom pad Thai. While it was good, it wasn't quite what I expected. Next time, I think I would rather have a heavier meal, like the Mac n Cheese or grilled cheese.  After dinner, we headed a few miles down the road to Ices Plain & Fancy. I've been dying to go here for months! They make their ice cream using liquid nitrogen! They also have custard, vegan, and boozy options! I went for the mint chip (I wanted chocolate) and Matt had the dulce de leche salted caramel custard. The custard was soooo creamy! But both were delicious!           It was another great anniversary with the love of my life. Can't wait to see what the next year has in store for us!