After 10 Long Years

*Warning. The following post may contain material not appropriate for those without a sense of humor.*

*Okay, there may actually be a couple of pictures not intended for the faint-of-heart* (This was our 1st anniversary. Silver Dollar City, and it was raining)

Well, recently Russ and I hit a major landmark in terms of marriage. Yep, we decided to divorce. Nah, just kidding, we just had our 10 year anniversary! I know some of you think that we have a horrible marriage, but in reality life together is great! In all seriousness though, I do love Russ. He is my best friend and we have a lot of fun together. If you know Russ, you'll know that our personalities are perfect for each other. Our humor and "fun sarcasm" have saved our marriage I'm sure throughout the past ten years. We've had some really rough times, yet through it all we learned to laugh because sometimes it's the only thing to do to keep from crying. I thought I would give a little history of the two people who became one on October 10th, 1998...

Once upon a time there was a little country girl named Aubrey...





(Here I am with my little brother, TG)









And a little boy on the left coast named Russ...








(Here he is with his brother Mark...can you tell which one is Russ? He's on the right)

But who would these kids grow up to marry?




Hmmmm...


Nope!












Notice that I went for tall and dark and he went for the blond cheerleader type...

Who would have known that someday these two would meet, and fall in love in, a gym at a church dance. I know, it's pretty lame, but hey it's our story!

I was in the Navy at the time we met, stationed in Texas...











(This was my 21st birthday in New Orleans, LA)


(And this was around the time I met Russ...)



















This was just after Russ and I started dating...













I think the picture speaks for itself, LOL!


Needless to say, Russ "had me at hello". I mean who could pass this up...

(Okay, I know I'm not playing nice, I just couldn't help myself, hee hee...)

So we decided to get married...




Now I don't know how many of you know this but...





Russ wore a dress...

It was a beautiful fall day at the Salt Lake Temple...there may have been a slight breeze, but I don't remember. Maybe you should ask Russ...hee hee
















Three weeks after we were married, we got pregnant with Aidan. Here is the "beautiful" picture of us after Aidan's birth...












The new family...

Our first trial came when my mom died the day Aidan turned six months old. Aidan and I spent every day caring for her until her death. Russ stood by me during that terrible time. What a wonderful husband.

Then came Connor...















And then our little miracle...















Coby was a little over a month old here and just a third of the way through his NICU stay...

Here he is after coming home the first time...


















The divorce rate for parents of NICU children apparently is extremely high. Again, we beat the odds. Just when we thought maybe we could get a grip on life...another surprise.

Heavenly Father had more in store for us than we thought we could handle...a little girl named Rylie...

















And this is our family...at least for now.



















And we know how to have a good time.I love you Russ and I love our family. I'm so glad that our family is eternal and that you are such a great husband and father. Here's to many more years of love and laughs, no matter what the future holds. Happy Anniversary!