Today is the eve of my 11th wedding anniversary. Gosh, where does the time go?

11 years.

Four children.

One miscarriage.

One near death experience.

Two apartments.

Two houses.

One parsonage.

Trials.

Triumphs.

Failures.

Grace.

One of my favorite stories from our marriage is when my husband decided to run a marathon. It was something he had wanted to do for awhile. So, I decided to do it with him because I am an athletic, hard core runner except that I’m totally not. I went and bought cute running shoes and I downloaded some cool tunes to the iPod. I could envision myself crossing the finish line amid cheers from adoring friends and family. I was certain that I was going to rock this marathon thing. I’m nothing if not realistic.

It took about two runs in the rain and a pulled muscle in my back for me to throw in the towel. Seriously, folks. Life is too short. Michael, however, kept on training and running.

The day of the race was brutally hot. It began just as one would think it should. The race began and off he went. We cheered and then went a little ways down the course to wait for our marathon runner to pass by. What we didn’t know was that, about a quarter of the way into the race, Michael had sustained a quite painful foot injury. So, by the time he reached our waiting spot, he was really struggling.

So, I left my kids with a friend who was there and I began walking beside him. We walked the entire second half of that marathon together. He was in absolute pain and I was in blue jeans and loafers. Looking back, I have to laugh. We must have been quite a sight. Here’s the thing – my walking beside him did not make his pain any less. But I like to think that it enabled him to keep walking.

That has been the blessing of our marriage.

When one of us is struggling, the other comes off of the sidelines and walks alongside. We can’t always fix the other person’s problem. We can’t always make the pain stop. But, we enable each other to keep walking. To keep believing.

So, in honor of 11 years with the Mr., I’m going to list 11 things that I love about him.

1. He loves Jesus more than he loves me.
2. He sees the beauty in the broken.
3. He dreams big.
4. He thinks I am beautiful and tells me so.
5. He wrestles with our babies.
6. He sat beside my hospital bed and sang Lionel Richie songs to me.
7. He believes in me.
8. He can make me laugh.
9. He knows my favorite ice cream, gum, drink, etc.
10. He is a hard worker.
11. He is a forgiver and a grace giver.

Happy anniversary, my love.