Sometimes it seems like 9 years is a long time, especially when I think about all the things that’ve happened since then; job changes, moves across the country, buying a house, and having two kids to say the least. On the other hand, sometimes I remember our wedding so clearly and it seems like it just happened.

My wedding ring is inscribed with the words, “The Luckiest”, and as far as I’m concerned, that’s been absolutely prophetic. I don’t just mean because the ring was missing for a year before being found by a stranger, but I mean my marriage in general. I know it’s pretty cliched to say “I’m the luckiest man!” when asked about your marriage, but I feel like in my case it’s far more justified.

You know that guy who was super popular in high school? Captain of the football team, popular-girl girlfriend, nice car, cool clothes? And then 10 years later he’s working at a gas station and still telling stories about his high school glory days? Sara is the exact opposite of that guy. I caught her on the way up, and she’s still going up. I probably married her the last possible second that I actually had a shot at her, because by now she’s way too good for me.

I call that being the luckiest.

I’d like to take credit for that, either claiming that I influenced her to greater heights, or at least claiming that I saw the potential. However, that would be completely inaccurate, which is why I’m putting this down to sheer luck. I realize that I’m walking a fine line here, because I run the risk of insulting her. After all, aren’t I kind of saying that she was sucky before? Not at all. I was totally happy with the Sara I married, even without knowing that she was just going to get more and more awesome.

Before we had kids, I was worried that Sara would be too grossed out to change a diaper. No joke, I told her this later. I really didn’t guess that there was a super-mom hiding inside of her. We used to watch every tv show on the planet. We used to eat frozen buffalo chicken strips for dinner multiple times a week. Yeah! This same Sara! I have a lot of trouble rectifying that person with the one I know so well now, who cans, and knits, and gardens, and doesn’t drink pop, and runs half-marathons.

These are my favorite things about Sara:

• Sometimes, out of the blue when you least expect it, she drops some amazing, thoughtful thing on you that is so touching it just blows your mind
• She doesn’t settle for something that is sub-par
• She never forgets things we need to do or lets Important Events slip through the cracks
• She tries as absolutely hard as she can every minute of the day to make sure our kids are being raised in the best possible way
• She forces me, kicking and screaming, to be a better person, whether it’s to take better care of myself, or to stop annoying habits, or to have more patience

Not to say that it’s all unicorns farting rainbows around here. Marriage is hard work, and anybody who tells you otherwise is probably operating a drive-through marriage chapel. Sometimes it’s really REALLY hard work. Sometimes it probably seems like it’s just all grumbling and complaining and someone might say, “Well, geez, that sounds miserable.” So I’m writing this all down here to say that, on the record, the good so very vastly outweighs the bad, even if I don’t always remember to say it.