Twelve Years and counting

(Self portrait at McCormick & Schmick's Harborside)

I can't seem to stay on top of anything these days, so I am finally posting, 10 days later, that Mike and I celebrated our 12 year wedding anniversary! This actually means that we've been together for 17, yes, SEVENTEEN, years. Well, 17 years and 4 kids later, we're still together.

It's not always easy, but we love each other, so I guess that's good. Who knew that day 17 years ago, on the bus on our way to the "Pray for Sun" dance put on by Mike's (now disbanded for all sorts of bad things) fraternity, when I moved up to a front seat because my friend, Martha, was peeing in the back of the bus, and Mike said: "Chicago? A fellow East Coaster!" in his New Yawk accent, that he was actually my Prince Charming in disguise?

So I will have to "massage" our story a little so I can tell my little princesses how we met, inserting some writer's flair and interpretation so that the big yellow school bus was actually a limo, that my friend, Martha, was actually my fairy godmother, and that the fraternity dance, was a grand ball, and that Mike's t-shirt and shorts, was actually a nice shirt and tie, and instead, he said: "May I have the first dance?"

Regardless of how not fairytale-like our "reality show" meeting was, our life has been nothing less than colorful, full of surprises and excitement, twists and turns, minivans and soccer games, and 4 beautiful babies. We may not have a castle or a lot of money, but we have each other, our incredible children, and most of all, love, so I guess I am getting my happily ever after, after all.

Happy Anniversary, Honey! Here's to 12 more 12 year anniversaries and many more...