So... I'm engaged!!
Oh wait, that was the last post. Sorry, I'm just still pretty excited about it! :-)
This past month has been a wonderful blur of holidays, parties and wedding planning. I have been enjoying it so very much! As a typical girl, I've had lots of ideas about what I wanted my wedding to be long before I had even met this amazing man I am going to be sharing it with. I knew there would be some stress involved in planning a wedding, but I seriously wasn't expecting to enjoy the details part of it this much!
Planning:
I have my date, venues, colors (Who knew there were so many different shades of purple??) maid of honor, bridesmaids, ministers (YES! My daddy is marrying me!) dress, florist, caterer (Mom, and a small army of her friends), baker, dj & lighting guy, flower girls, ring bearer, invitations have been ordered and I'm still grinning!
However, in this whirlwind of color choices (seriously: "Black Tulip" Who comes up with a color name that has a DIFFERENT color in it?), decisions to be made, people to contact and a small business to continue running I got a teensy bit stressed out yesterday. There have been a few stressful moments before yesterday, but they were mostly small and fairly easy to resolve, so I wouldn't say I've been "stressed out" yet.
The Date:
In my stressed out state yesterday I was reminded me of something very important. I won't go into all the details, but Zac had a rough day too, and we had a date night* yesterday. We both got some real-life practice of putting the other first last night as we spent time together after having difficult days.
I'm very thankful for the example and wisdom from my mother who's voiced popped into my head the moment I saw Zac. His face said that his day had been worse than mine and my brained played a recording, "This 'marriage thing' means he comes first. You prefer him over yourself."
As the evening played out we each shared what was bothering us and we're both able to still have a great night. We were both encouraged by the other in our individual issues. I am de-stressed! And am looking forward to more planning in the weeks to come.
Preparing:
As I was driving home last night I was truly thankful for the chance to listen to Zac and be there for him after he had a rough day. I was even more thankful for his willingness to listen to and care for me after he had a rough day. Is this what a marriage is supposed to look like? I admittedly have ZERO experience in marriage, but there is something my dad always says when he preforms a ceremony. "Sorrows will be halved and joys will be doubled." I don't think that happens without some choices being made on purpose.
I could have met Zac with my list of complaints from the day and he could have done the same to me. But we both chose to prefer the other last night. As I was driving home and this morning when I got up the thought kept coming to me.
"Plan my wedding, but prepare for my marriage."
What am I doing, and what should I be doing, in my day-to-day life to prepare for being a wife? (Seriously, that is a question for readers. I'd love to see some ideas and input in the comments or on Facebook.) I know I'll probably screw it up a lot, but maybe if I keep this at the forefront of my thoughts-even while picking out which shade of purple is correct-I'll be a teensy bit more prepared and able to love and serve my husband like Christ wants His church to love and serve Him.
*He took me to see a The Princess Bride at "Classics" night at the movie theater! Fairly packed house watching a movie that we already loved. This guy knows me so well!!
