Tomorrow, Marty and I celebrate two years of marriage (and almost 7 years together). We had a fairytale wedding, and Marty even went along with my Jeep wedding photos. (You can read all about the Jeep photos here.)
Our story started on a trail. On February 8, 2020, we met for a 7-mile hike, and Shadow tagged along. A week later, on February 15, we went to a movie. It was a bad movie for a date- lots of death and destruction. War is hell, you know. Because our first date came so close to Valentine’s Day, every year we celebrate our first date and Valentine’s Day together. We usually buy each other new Birkenstocks. Last year I got cute pink patent leather, and Marty went with green suede. It’s quirky, I know.
After that first hike I thought he was pretty amazing. He liked my dog, which was a big plus. By then, Shadow and I were hiking a lot, I’d joined a kayaking group, and I spent most of my free time outdoors. Meeting someone who loved it as much as I did felt like a gift. Who else would climb Katahdin with me? <laughter>
Katahdin was my idea, by the way. Early on, Marty took me on a killer hike that I named “the death hike.” Halfway up Katahdin, he told me, “If you ever bring up that death hike again, I’m just going to say, ‘Remember Katahdin.'” LOL
We’ve had a lot of adventures together. The 100-Mile Wilderness and Katahdin were the most epic, but I also loved Max Patch to Hot Springs, Dickey Gap to Damascus, and Carvers Gap to US 19E. We’ve camped in the ice on Old 105, and in more places than I could fit in one post.
Here’s what might surprise people: we’ve never had a real fight. When we disagree, there’s no yelling. We just talk it out. For a long time I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, until my therapist told me this is what a normal, healthy adult relationship looks like. Marty even went to therapy with me before we got married. He didn’t need to, but he knew how much it mattered to me.
I love so many little things about him. When he’s on day shift, he makes coffee for both of us before work, even though we start at basically the same time. He always answers when I call. He puts up with my crazy love of animals, and he loves Ghost. He helps around the house and fixes anything that breaks. He even built me the worm composting bin I’d wanted for decades.(worms are SO cool) He’s the only other person I know who only wears wool socks, too.
And we cook together, which is one of my favorite parts of the day. When Marty went keto for his diabetes, we learned a whole new way of cooking together, and it turned out to be so much fun. That’s why we gave each other a 12-inch Stargazer cast iron skillet for our anniversary. Corny? Maybe. But it’s us.
Next year we’re heading back to the Indy 500 in May, and then on to the Yukon. I can’t wait to see what comes after that.
I made Marty an anniversary card that says, “You are my greatest adventure.” I meant every word. Here’s the link to the post I wrote on our first anniversary: Celebrating Our First Anniversary: A Journey of Friendship and Love.
Happy anniversary, Marty.
Never stop exploring and never give up hope. Life is good.
