Daniel and I got our marriage license this week (another thing I can check off my list!), and apparently it’s pretty easy to get married in the state of Maryland. We had to raise our right hands to swear to tell the truth. Then we were just asked our names, ages, addresses, social security numbers, etc. and whether we had been married before or were related to one another. We didn’t even have to show identification, which I was surprised about.
We also applied for our passports the same day, which we will need for our honeymoon. Here’s a tip: if you’re applying for a passport, bring a photo with you to the post office (or wherever it is you’re applying). Daniel and I thought it would be easier for them to do our passports if they took the photos there and didn’t know it would cost any extra money. It did-- $15 bucks each, on top of the $100 each for the passports themselves! Crazy.
Anyways, looking for inspiration for this week’s entry, I asked Caroline what she wanted to know about that I hadn’t written yet. She said she would love to read about Daniel’s and my hopes and dreams for our future together… so if you aren’t interested in that, you’ll have to take it up with her. Unfortunately, Caroline isn’t her real name so that will only work if you already know who she is!
So here’s what Daniel and I want our lives to be like from May 16 forward. We already have a small house (which you know) on two beautiful acres of property only seven minutes from my family, which is where I’ve always wanted to live. In about five years, we hope to build a larger, Victorian style house on the land. We already had a plan picked out even before we settled on the land—counting our chickens before they had hatched, I know! Thankfully, we got the property.
Daniel should finish school and receive his master’s degree in clinical psychology in May 2010, which will hopefully allow him to get a bump in pay that is enough to allow me to stay home with our children when we have them. Ever since I was a very little girl, the only aspiration I have always been sure about was my desire to “be a mom.” To me, this meant that I wanted to do what my mom did. She stayed at home with me and my siblings while my dad went to work, and although I didn’t personally know anything different, I always loved that she was home. I know that for most of my childhood, it was not at all easy (financially speaking) for my parents to live and take care of their children on one income that was itself not very high. Daniel and I are blessed to be starting off on better financial footing than my parents did. If they could make living on one income work, I know that we can too, even when it does involve sacrifices.
That point aside, I have also always dreamed of being a novelist and writing from home. We joke about how I just need to “hurry up and write my best-seller” so that we won’t have to worry about money anymore. Maybe someday…
Daniel loves the job he has now working with children with special needs, mostly autism. He would love to continue in that field for the foreseeable future, and maybe someday work towards getting his doctorate degree. Maybe. I am not a huge fan of that idea myself, but we’ll see!
So I’ll be at home taking care of our children (four or five, or whatever God wants to give us), writing stories, and teaching Sunday school, which I also love. Daniel and I will never move from the land we own now, but we will travel the country with our kids on vacations, and travel Europe and the Holy Land when we retire. And we’ll never be bored! That’s what big families are good for, right?
There you have it. That is what I want for Daniel’s and my life together. I know that Proverbs 16:9 says, “In his mind a man plans his course, but the LORD directs his steps.” I hope that God doesn’t have anything too different figured out for us! I think I like Proverbs 16:3 better: “Entrust your works to the LORD, and your plans will succeed,” it says. That’s exactly what we plan to do!
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3 comments:
I found your blog through Family Foundations magazine. I hope all your dreams come true! My husband and I have had many surprises in the short 2 and a half years we've been married. We have infertility, a ruptured ectopic pregnancy, and house damage in a hurricane. We've also been surprised with two awesome dogs, our precious son through adoption, and incredible neighbors. Life isn't what we expected, but we wouldn't change it for anything! Even the hardest things have been a blessing with the grace of matrimony--yes, even losing a child, agonizing as that is, since we wouldn't have the son we have now otherwise. We could have chosen to be bitter, but we were able to move on with God's help. So hold on to your dreams, while being flexible, as God may give you your richest blessings through the darkest, most shocking moments.
TXMom2B, Thanks so much for sharing your story! It is inspiring to hear that your marriage has survived and even been strengthened by such circumstances. Adoption is beautiful- Daniel and I have always said that if we can't have children of our own we will adopt. Have you seen the following video? It is great (kind of a tear jerker!) http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=47bfb48d43cd7a245beb
Oh my gosh, were you right about that God Tube video you just shared! It's a beautiful video I would not have known about had I not read your blog. Thanks for sharing! I just might have to share it myself. :)
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