After celebrating our anniversary on Monday (a day early) by going out to dinner and then shopping for an entirely new set of bedding for our bed (and getting a new shower head!), yesterday was a much more relaxed version of our anniversary, which was very nice. We took a picnic lunch and ate with Cody at work, Cody brought me home a dozen red roses, and after Becca went to bed, we watched The Bachelorette from Monday night off the dvr. Super relaxed. And very nice.
But the part of the evening that meant the most to me actually occurred while I was in our bedroom by myself putting away laundry. Cody and Becca had the dogs out on the back porch. I could see them through our French doors. She was sitting on the chair between his legs with her little feet dangling down, kicking the rungs between the rocking chair legs. Her blonde hair was blowing in the breeze, and Cody’s protective hand was hanging onto her little belly. Cody was throwing the Frisbee for the dogs, and they were both laughing. So loud I could hear them clearly inside.
Becca has this cute little giggle she gets when everyone else laughs at something someone has said – she knows something was funny, so she giggles – about two seconds too late. It’s super cute. Then she has this chuckle when she’s thought of something funny in her own little world, and none of us can understand. It’s super cute too. But she has a laugh that is reserved only for her puppies. A laugh that comes from her heart, from her soul, from the very depths of her being. A belly laugh that she can’t control, can’t stop, it’s just a sign of the true depth of her joy. She could sit and watch Daisy and Boko catch the Frisbee longer than they could actually have the energy to catch it. And the sound of that laugh fills my heart with a warmth I can’t explain, and honestly don’t really understand.
I can hold her and play with the dogs and get her to laugh, and I love it. But it goes to a whole other level when Cody laughs with her. The love that fills my heart is something I can’t even begin to describe. It’s sort of the way your mouth feels when you take that first sip of your favorite hot latte. There’s a ZING! as the heat touches your tongue and your taste buds explode. There’s the soothing AHHH! of the flavor. There’s the MMMM! as the warmth runs down your throat and settles in your belly. And there’s the feeling of happiness and immediate rush of endorphins to your brain. It’s sort of like that. But on a much deeper, soul-warming level.
Really, THAT was the perfect anniversary present. I loved the years when it was just us. Our first anniversary, we traveled to Colorado and enjoyed a cabin in the mountains. Our second anniversary, we went out to a fabulous dinner and put together the Lego carrousel. Our third anniversary, we went to DFW and to the LEGOLAND Discovery Center and bought an amazing British ship to put together. Our fourth anniversary, we traveled a couple weekends early to Corpus and spent the weekend at the aquarium and on the beach and just enjoying our last vacation just us. But we have always wanted kids. Always wanted to have a family. And while it was a wonderful and beautiful thing to go to dinner and shopping Monday night and enjoy our time just us, THAT moment was the best gift ever. Seeing the love Cody has for our baby girl is the most amazing gift I could have ever asked for. Seeing her love of her puppies is just incredible. Seeing the two of them so genuinely happy together and hearing the product of that happiness is a gift that no one can buy and wrap. Noone can write that love into the sweetest, most thoughtful card. And nope, not even a dozen of HEB’s most beautiful red roses ever will begin to be as great of a gift as seeing their love.
My heart is so full. Someday we’ll have more family members. But for now, it’s just the six of us: Becca, “Mahmah,” “Dada,” “Days,” “Bobo,” and “Toods.” And I am content. God has blessed us beyond measure.
Check out our anniversary video here: https://vimeo.com/68129949
My loves on a walk earlier this week.
Butterbees and Bumbleflies 