Finding the wife of his youth, again.

Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth. Proverbs 5:18

This weekend I had the priviledge of spending time with a new teen couple and they were stinking sweet. I am convinced that we do not spend enough time with the younger generation. They could help us out a lot if we allowed it. They would remind us to enjoy the one we love, how to shut out all the background noise and just focus on The One we choose to walk this life with. And in turn we could help give them tools to create a strong spiritually centered relationship, after all we have been there, made the mistakes and bought the T-shirts. 

Okay so one thing that struck me as I was with them is how much fun they had together. There was no shortage of laughter and bantering back and forth. As life crowds in on us we get more and more serious and forget to joke and just be senselessly silly with the love of our life and in a lot of cases our fun loving spouses can annoy us and cause us to resent them if we are not careful and do not change our attitude. So in this spirit I started tweaking my date night list (yes there is a list, sad I know but I am a list person). I came across Seventeen Magazine's Romantic Date Lists and what struck me was how many of these date ideas had never been crossed off my list. Now how much fun is it going to be to just seize the day with the man of my dreams? I will get to enjoy all the folly of youthful dates, with the joy of marriage. I believe this is what God had in mind when he created Adam and Eve and marriage. Not the stress ridden institution we try to make it. When stress takes over it is time to stop and re-evaluate our priorities and try a different plan of action in many cases. There is freedom in a Godly marriage to explore and enjoy one another with God's blessing. I know this may sound silly to some of you, just promise me you will give it a try. You never know how much fun you might be missing. And I guarantee you that it will bring you closer to your love.

Fun date idea links:  http://www.essortment.com/55-creative-cheap-dating-ideas-teens-50053.html
            http://www.seventeen.com/love/date-ideas-for-teens#category1-1

Get to know you better activity: http://www.ordinaryinspirations.blogspot.com/2013/01/spice-up-your-marriage-30-date-your.html

Through my Lens

DeAnna's moment in time, captured by yours truly.

Breaking news.... Newsflash.... WE ARE NOT ALL PICTURE PERFECT!   I stand behind the lens a lot, I notice clothing , crooked smiles, stray hairs, lip stick on teeth. Lord forbid... pimples. I see flaws... I see the person who stands in front of me.. Trying to be happy, knowing they are insecure.. knowing they are nervous... What will this crazy woman make me do. Ha Ha, stand on your head. Not! Only if you can of course.. :)  In my case I see double chins and a girly mustache. Some of us are fat some of us are skinny. But the thing I see first and foremost when I am behind the lens is a human being.
   You are a beautiful human being. Even with your crooked smile, stray hairs and lip sticked teeth and pimples. The pictures I capture are beautiful, each and every one.  I hope you can see into you. Your story.. your pages. What I want to give to you is a memory. I want you to see that for 1 hour maybe 2 you are important!  You are, you are to me. I consider you my new friends. I know that  life is not all grins and giggles. But I also know that we need to feel pretty, treasured. Yes, even the guys as macho as they are need to feel manly and like a protector, like a leader.

Ladies... be proud of the women you are.. God made you and you are unique and beautiful. You are  blessed!  Snap, Snap... tilt your head down. Chin up. With every click you warm up to me.. your inner beauty shines.. that's that beauty you don't even realize you possess . So what I see behind my glass is YOU! The real you. The beautiful, blossoming you! I see your smile . I see life . I see happy times . I see it in your eyes. There is hope for tomorrow's future, inside those telling eyes. Even if you're having a rough time.. I see it.. so the next time you book a session with your photographer... Remember I can fix any flaw in photo shop, but that isn't what I look at.  I see happiness in your attitude, your eyes. Your story is being told. I see on your page a life, you have a bright future, brimming with promise and possibilities. When you look back at your pictures you will remember a time, you will remember the place. They will transport you to a happier time when life overtakes you, when hope is lean. Pictures are our time capsules. Treasure each moment, it doesn't last very long.     Snap,Click!    Cheese!!

Break is over!

Andi and I are sorry for our little break. A lot of things happened when we started this blog. Our marriages got stronger as we became more aware of how we were treating our spouses and how Christ wanted us to treat/love our spouses. Then the enemy took notice and started testing us, so we took some time out to focus on what means the most, our families and marriages. After all this is what this blog is all about, to encourage you to nurture and find contentment in the marriage you have. For both of us our marriages are our most prized gift from God. It is the backbone that our families are built upon.

  Houses and wealth are inherited from parents,
but a prudent wife is from the LORD. ~Proverbs 19:14

 There are a lot of exciting things going on for both of us. Andi's photography business is growing and expanding. She is really coming into her own as a photographer and artist. Then,  Donald and I are planning our 10th wedding anniversary, time sure has flown. We decided to celebrate with a vow renewal, at times I wonder what I was thinking but I know it will be worth it. I will share more with you as the time draws near. We have missed sharing what God is teaching us and hearing from you all and we are happy to be back with you!