15

When I met him he was 20. I was 15. I know, I know. Scandalous right? It was January 20th 1996. I remember because I remember everything. He was my first official date. My first REAL boyfriend. At 15 they say you don't know much. About life or love. But I knew. In my heart. That he was IT.

I saved everything. Movie tickets, concert tickets, our horoscopes, even gum wrappers (I know, stalkerish/pathetic). I saved anything that reminded me of a moment spent with him.
He whispered sweet nothings in my ear, made me cry a couple jillion times, and asked me on my porch late one night how long he would have to wait to marry me.
But before we were married we were bonded for life. By our "little bear". Our Michael.
People said that we were too young. We wouldn't last. It never does. They said eventually he'd stop coming around. Because well, that's what guys do when they take on too much, too young. They give up and they take off. But he didn't. Like I knew he wouldn't. Because he was IT. For me.

And so he bought a house. For us. For our family. We did it backwards, but it doesn't matter now.

When Michael was a year old we married and we came back from our honeymoon with Andrew.
Years later we would be blessed a third time with Dominic.

So much changes over time. So many things happen in our lives. Good things that keep you going and not-so-good things that threaten to tear you apart.
But he's always been there. By my side. Holding me up. Keeping me sane. He listens to me. He makes me laugh. He tells me I'm beautiful. He gives me hope when I feel there's none left. He strokes my hair when we lay in bed at night. He makes me chocolate covered strawberries on special occasions. He knows exactly which days to bring home take out food for dinner and exactly how I like my coffee. He's my everything and then some.
I wish with all my might that I could make him feel my gratitude for him. For his hard work. For his loyalty. For his consideration and his faithfulness. But he'll never know. Because there are no words I could speak. Nothing I could give to show him how much I appreciate all he's done to create our life together.

Come August he will be 35 years old. That's 15 years that I've loved him. And I can't wait for the 50 more to come.

♥Elena

"You can't stop loving or wanting to love because when its right, its the best thing in the world. When your in a relationship and it's good, even if nothing else in your life is right, you feel like your whole world is complete" ~ Keith Sweat