Today marks me and my husband's 15 year wedding anniversary. While that may seem like a long time to many, it honestly just feels like it was yesterday. Where has the time gone?
I'm still in awe when I think about our wedding, because it didn't happen like you would expect it to. Everyone always assumes that we had this lavish ceremony and reception, so imagine their surprise when we tell them that we eloped after only 8 months of dating. Yep. 8 months. And no...we weren't friends for years before then. We didn't even know "of "each other. We literally started dating from the moment we met. It was 'love at first sight.'
Picture it: Las Vegas, July 7, 2002. I was 20 and he was 24.
I remember the day before we got married, I surprised him with a hotel room at the Flamingo. The suite was amazing. The windows were floor to ceiling and we had the view of the strip, which was spectacular with all the lights at night. Since it was the middle of summer, we decided to go swimming [but since I can't swim, it was more like standing in water at the shallow end]. We saw a bride and groom taking pictures at a Gazebo located close to the pool, and I jokingly said, "we should get married right now."
He smiled my favorite smile, hugged me in the pool, and said, "I would, because you know I want to marry you."
Later that evening, we headed over to Caesar's Palace and ate dinner at Cheesecake Factory. During dinner we were talking about how we felt about each other and then marriage came up. To spare you the mushy details, I asked, "do you want to get married tonight?" and he, of course, said yes!
Just to be fair, even though I popped the question, this time around, he originally asked me in the beginning of our relationship. We even had promise rings. So I'm not going to take credit for the whole thing. I honestly don't know if I would have asked if he didn't propose first.
I was so excited and nervous, that I went to the restroom to call my best friend, asking her if she would be there. She was so happy for us, that she started to cry on the phone.
When we were done with dinner, we went to the courthouse to get our marriage license [it's Vegas and it's open 24/7]. After, he went home to get ready and my best friend met me at my house to get ready. We drove in separate cars so that he didn't see me before walking down the aisle. I remember arriving there at the same time, and he was so nervous that he left his car keys in the car. Luckily for him, I had a spare!
I was also nervous, but once the doors opened to the chapel, and I saw him, the nerves went away. I just remember thinking...this is the man I'm going to spend the rest of my life with.
And here we are...15 years later.
Don't get me wrong. It wasn't always blissful. We've had our share of disagreements, annoyances, and moments where we questioned whether or not we were going to make it. We've literally traveled through hell and back, but I'm glad we did. I heard somewhere that you don't get to 50 years without a few bumps in the road. I find that to be true.
Our love has definitely evolved. I love him more than the day I married him, and to say that after 15 years, is amazing to me. It just goes to show that there isn't a time frame on how long you should be together before getting married. It's just knowing that you love this person so much that you can't imagine a life without them.
We're celebrating with a night out in Pasadena! We plan on eating at an Italian Restaurant, walk around like tourists and do a little shopping. It's one of our favorite things to do. I plan on writing a review on the restaurant we eat at, so keep a look out for that post tomorrow!
For now, I will leave you with the romantic words of Beethoven, "Ever thine. Ever mine. Ever ours."
I'm still in awe when I think about our wedding, because it didn't happen like you would expect it to. Everyone always assumes that we had this lavish ceremony and reception, so imagine their surprise when we tell them that we eloped after only 8 months of dating. Yep. 8 months. And no...we weren't friends for years before then. We didn't even know "of "each other. We literally started dating from the moment we met. It was 'love at first sight.'
Picture it: Las Vegas, July 7, 2002. I was 20 and he was 24.
I remember the day before we got married, I surprised him with a hotel room at the Flamingo. The suite was amazing. The windows were floor to ceiling and we had the view of the strip, which was spectacular with all the lights at night. Since it was the middle of summer, we decided to go swimming [but since I can't swim, it was more like standing in water at the shallow end]. We saw a bride and groom taking pictures at a Gazebo located close to the pool, and I jokingly said, "we should get married right now."
He smiled my favorite smile, hugged me in the pool, and said, "I would, because you know I want to marry you."
Later that evening, we headed over to Caesar's Palace and ate dinner at Cheesecake Factory. During dinner we were talking about how we felt about each other and then marriage came up. To spare you the mushy details, I asked, "do you want to get married tonight?" and he, of course, said yes!
Just to be fair, even though I popped the question, this time around, he originally asked me in the beginning of our relationship. We even had promise rings. So I'm not going to take credit for the whole thing. I honestly don't know if I would have asked if he didn't propose first.
I was so excited and nervous, that I went to the restroom to call my best friend, asking her if she would be there. She was so happy for us, that she started to cry on the phone.
When we were done with dinner, we went to the courthouse to get our marriage license [it's Vegas and it's open 24/7]. After, he went home to get ready and my best friend met me at my house to get ready. We drove in separate cars so that he didn't see me before walking down the aisle. I remember arriving there at the same time, and he was so nervous that he left his car keys in the car. Luckily for him, I had a spare!
I was also nervous, but once the doors opened to the chapel, and I saw him, the nerves went away. I just remember thinking...this is the man I'm going to spend the rest of my life with.
And here we are...15 years later.
Don't get me wrong. It wasn't always blissful. We've had our share of disagreements, annoyances, and moments where we questioned whether or not we were going to make it. We've literally traveled through hell and back, but I'm glad we did. I heard somewhere that you don't get to 50 years without a few bumps in the road. I find that to be true.
Our love has definitely evolved. I love him more than the day I married him, and to say that after 15 years, is amazing to me. It just goes to show that there isn't a time frame on how long you should be together before getting married. It's just knowing that you love this person so much that you can't imagine a life without them.
We're celebrating with a night out in Pasadena! We plan on eating at an Italian Restaurant, walk around like tourists and do a little shopping. It's one of our favorite things to do. I plan on writing a review on the restaurant we eat at, so keep a look out for that post tomorrow!
For now, I will leave you with the romantic words of Beethoven, "Ever thine. Ever mine. Ever ours."
XO
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