a love letter to my beloved husband

Laura Simson Photography

My sweet, sweet husband,

On our two year anniversary...

I am so thankful for you;

for your excited spirit and positive attitude

for always making me smile, even through tears

for leading our family and taking risks that you feel called to

for being the absolute best teammate

for always being so completely selfless

for your entrepreneurial and creative spirit

for leading me and encouraging my relationship with Christ

for building forts for us to eat dinner in

for taking me on countless picnics

for dancing me with so hard that our hips, necks, legs and every other part of our body hurts the next day

for laughing with me when I'm not funny

for forgiving me when I'm not kind

for giving me a million chances

and never holding anything against me

for loving me and seeing only perfection

and never setting me up to fail

for your commitment to your vows

and always standing by them and us.


I have learned so much from you, as your wife. You show me daily what it means to love like Christ. To enjoy and take hold of every moment. How to treat those in your life and to approach the future. You've taught me to look at the bright side and to let go. That I'm not my own redeemer but that Christ is. That no matter how hard I work at something, it's not me doing it. He is. All through your leadership.

I commit to you to be the best wife I can be. To love you and fight for you every single day. To encourage, support and follow you.  To grow with you and learn from you. To respect you. Always. To laugh with you, have fun with you and find the good, even when we feel like we're drowning. I promise to always be on your side, on your team. And to never set you up for failure.

Thank you for two insanely fun, full and wild years and a future filled with many more amazing years. I know that we will have challenges and tough times, but the joy will outweigh the pain.

You're the stuffing to my turkey.

I love you,
your bride

two moments. one man.

Blogtember Day 6: Describe a distinct moment when your life took a turn. Yup, you're getting exactly what you prob expected

 Two moments. It was five years ago to the month. The night I met Mike. He changed it all for me. I had had my fair share of dysfunctional relationships. All great men but we just weren't right for one another. Until Mike. I remember walking into Raleigh Times (local watering hole) and spotting him in the group I was meeting up with (by group, I mean him and I were playing wingman unknowingly so there were four total). He was cute. Real cute. Then he opened his mouth. He was smart, funny, listened well, engaged in conversation like he enjoyed it not because he was interested in something else. I was pretty impressed. Doesn't take much, does it ;)?

He brings out sides of me I never knew I had. He also keeps me from taking every risk that comes my way. He's my safety net, my encourager, my cheerleader and best friend. I came out of my rut and stopped taking so many blatant wrong turns. It was through our decision to be obedient, that both of our relationships with Christ transformed. That we transformed. Ok seriously, look down. He's such a little cutie!


circa Dec 2008

It was two years ago to the month. I married that man. It was through our commitment of marriage that I've grown closer to Jesus, been challenged to be more like Him, be selfless, forgive, support, encourage, submit, work hard at something, never give up. I've learned more about myself, my intended role as a wife, my Jesus in the past two years than the 24 before that. I've been challenged and feel more alive and excited than ever. I don't know what it is but this spot where I am right now, feels like I've finally found my groove.



Laura Simson Photography

And it all started on a September night at Raleigh Times.

1 Peter 3:1-6
In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior. And let not your adornment be merely external-- braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God. For in this way in former times the holy women also, who hoped in God, used to adorn themselves, being submissive to their own husbands. Thus Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, and you have become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up. Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm, but how can one be warm alone? And if one can overpower him who is alone, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart.
 
1 Corinthians 13:4-8
Love is patient, love is kind, and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away.

I kidnapped my husband

"what are you doing this weekend?"

"Oh, just kidnapping my husband."

Yes. This is real life.

Last weekend, I told mike I had made dinner reservations at Vin Rouge, a little French restaurant in Durham that we had never been to {decoy number one}. I drove his car to work because mine was "making funny noises" {decoy number two}. Little did he know I packed us an overnight bag and hid it in the trunk. After he got off work he drove to my work and we jumped in his car. It was pouring rain so he blindly followed my directions instead of following his {whew!}. We drove through Durham and in about 10 minutes were surrounded by beautiful pastures and open air. I told him to take a left at the next light and it would be immediately on the left. Little did I know there would be a massive sign with the words Arrowhead Inn at the corner of the stoplight. Hmm. Mike started giggling like a school girl. I fumbled around for a cover up "oh I forgot to tell you the restaurant is in an inn... Isn't that cool?!?" immediately followed by "just kidding... Surprise! No dinner! We're staying here! Well we will eat dinner too and uh yeah surprise!" I am not one with words.

Luckily the rain broke as soon as we pulled in and we were greeted by a beautiful white plantation home surrounded by beautiful lush gardens. I grabbed our bags as mikes mouth hung to the floor.

Arrowhead Inn was amazing! The hosts told us the history of the home and that we were staying in the original master bedroom from the 1770s! Our room was decked out with a huge soaking tub, a STEAM shower {best thing ever}, fire place, robes, mini fridge, wine glasses, chocolates, etc. they didn't forget a thing. They even wrote us a cute letter that welcomed us and made us feel at home. I pulled out the camera to capture it all and forgot the memory card.. Arg! Forgive me for phone photos!

follow me on Instagram (@ckhurtig)

We enjoyed the room for awhile and then made our way to vin rouge for dinner {see I didn't completely lie to him}. Our tastebuds were in for a ride. A sweet French man helped us make delicious choices that paired well together and told us all about each dish. We love food and wine so having the little details put the cherry on top. As we devoured our stinky cheeses, bottle of wine and fresh seafood, we enjoyed the beautiful porch and talked through our hopes and dreams. It was perfect. After two hours we made our way back to the inn --full and happy.

The next morning we headed down to breakfast to be surprised with a cute setup for two and an ah-maze-ing breakfast. I forgot to mention the cook at the inn is a chef that is part of a culinary genius group with other chefs in the area. note: that is not the the of their group-- just what I'm calling it. We stuffed ourselves to the brim and headed to the gardens for a morning walk. It was a true escape... And only 30 minutes from home.

Lately we've had so much going on that we haven't had enough time to enjoy one another. Lots of changes in our lives and a busy schedule leaves little room for us. Our marriage is way too important to let little things get in the way. We decided to have a monthly getaway where we could forget obligations, schedules, plans and just focus on each other. First escape... Success!