Good Morning Girls!  Happy Anniversary to me!  Tom and I have been married 12 years today.  Many of you know that it has not been an easy 12 years.  The first few years were mostly miserable to be honest with you.  I spent many hours sobbing hysterically in the closet (good thing we had a walk in).  Marriage was not at all what I expected it to be.  What I expected was that somehow after saying the words "I Do", all of my problems would be solved.  I would no longer feel insecure, angry, depressed, lonely.  Somehow the words "I Do" equaled "I'm Whole".   For those of you who got married under the same misconceptions, you know all to well just how wrong that is.
When you get married with baggage (and trust me I had enough to fill the airplane) it does not suddenly disappear.  Quite the opposite happens.  When you get married with baggage, not only does your baggage stay, but it gets added to the baggage your spouse is carrying (which means we needed to hook a u-haul to the back of the airplane).
What!  My baggage is still here?!  And what's up with this old ratty garment bag....and this suitcase.....this isn't mine, I've never seen this before!  This baggage doesn't even match....and look there aren't any wheels on this big thing.  I can't even drag it behind me.  I've got to actually pick up the stupid thing!  What's going on here?  This is not what I signed up for!  Why are my bags still here?  And why does it seem like they are multiplying?!  I think you get the picture.....
The good news is, we grew up.  We quit fighting each other, and started fighting together.  We are on the same team now.  We are no longer pointing fingers at who has the most baggage.....we are simply fighting together to get rid of all of them, one by one.  Now it still isn't "easy".  I don't think it ever gets easy, as the enemy of our faith loves nothing more than to break up a family.  But I definitely believe it gets easier.  As time goes by you learn what is important and what is trivial.  You learn what will start a fight, and more importantly you learn how to end one....quickly.  You learn that though the grass may seem greener on the other side, if you look closely, there is plenty of dog poop and crab grass in every yard!
So Girls, if you are still on the "crying in the closet" side of your marriage, don't lose heart.  It will not always be that way.  You will figure it out....as long as you have the Lord in your heart and ask Him to build your marriage and help you get your baggage down to the size of a carry-on.  Until then I will leave you with a verse I used to meditate on when I was really irritated with Tom.  Now I know it is immature, but I thought you all may need a little giggle today. 


Matthew 22:30 At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven.

Love to you all-
Jen