Our first year

Yesterday marked one year of marriage for Nicholas and I. We've learned what it means cherish one another, and we've made sacrifices for one another. And it's been so refining, challenging, and joyful. When I look back on our first year of marriage, there is a lot I want to remember. A few of the specifics:

• We developed a beloved morning routine: wake up together (even when it's inconvenient), French-pressed coffee, a good breakfast, and Bible readings together. We love waking up just a little earlier than we need to, in order to have some down time together before the day starts.
• Even though baking was my first love, I learned to love cooking, and to incorporate more variety and nutrition (way more veggies than ever before) in our diet. Also, we decided to (mostly) cut out refined sugars, refined and highly processed wheat products, and other processed food, generally following an 80/20 rule. We've expanded our palate to include more ethnic foods and new spices/seasonings. Also, I learned that regular meal planning takes discipline, but it means we spend less on groceries, throw away less food, and eat more balanced meals.
• We usually communicate best when we're on a walk or on a long car ride (long car rides with him are my favorite)
• We learned how to be together without finding silence awkward. We really enjoy an evening where we're engaged in our own activities, but still near one another
• I learned that in the context of running a household with Nicholas, my heart can be overly "task-oriented." Thankfully, Nicholas notices and gently reminds me to relax and just enjoy myself, knowing the dishes and laundry can wait.
• No one makes me laugh like he does.
• We relied upon and trusted God's promises, and His plan for our lives, relating to our move to Austin, in particular
• We learned how to wait well and how to have patience in waiting for God's perfect timing
• We moved across the country to Austin, Texas (why we moved here & the move itself, which was quite the adventure)
• We realized how much we need community (and that real, true community can take time)
• We're not the same people we were when we got married (and definitely not the same people we were when we were dating), but that's how it should be. We're continually learning and growing, and marriage is refining us.
• We naturally settled into our God-ordained roles (I, as Nicholas' helpmate and encourager, and Nicholas as my leader) but at times it's tempting to buck those roles in favor of "doing our own thing." In my case, I can be tempted to boss him around or not trust him to lead us as a family. But God is most glorified (and we are happiest) when we honor those roles he specifically designed for us.
• We realized how much more there is to learn (but there's no one I'd rather figure out life with than Nicholas)

I'm looking forward to many more years together (and a fancy celebratory dinner with just the two of us later this week) :)

^^Both photographs in this post were taken by my talented brother, Matt Peterson. His photography website is here.