One year ago

One year ago tonight my Best Greatest Love and I had acquired a marriage license, sent about 12 text messages each saying, "69 cent tacos at the roadhouse tonight, hope you can join us!" or something like that. When a fair representation of our people arrived, my BGL proposed (I said yes), then he promptly announced we had decided to elope and we were going to get married, "right now."

Then, on cue, the mistress and master of the roadhouse emerged and lead the fully legal, however non-traditional, ceremony. Friends were there to clap. Some cried. We opened the tab for cheap tacos and beer. $135 later we'd hosted a very memorable surprise wedding and reception. No cake, no dress, just us and friends and road house regulars looking on, a bit confused about the happenings.

Tonight we returned there for dinner with one of the champagne flutes from that night, and one from our recent big celebration, the Hitchin Party. We had a toast with the mistress of the roadhouse, and ate some barfood for dinner with our boys. Some of the regulars inquired about our funny champagne flutes with beer in them and quickly recalled that night. "Was that a year ago already?"

It hardly seems like it could be. What a big difference from my first marriage when the first year was an unending realization of an error of uncomfortable porportions.

The Mr. of the bar and our co-officiant of the ceremony came by our table tonight to say hello and congrats. My son said, "Thank you for marrying us!" as he gave him a big hug.

Then he turned it into a joke and said, "Thank you for marrying me!" followed by a much bigger hug.

We laughed at his blossoming sense of humor, but during the meal tonight we knew completely that our marriage wasn't just about us. It was the day that our three years of dating stopped being dating. It was the day that we leaned into this like we had not done before, in a very careful way because we weren't just deciding for two. It was the day each of our sons got a brother, we each were given the important although sometimes stressful duty of becoming a step-parent, and we became a team for each other in a different kind of way.

It wan't just an anniversary for two of us tonight, it was an anniversary for all four of us.