Happy Anniversary Mama and Daddy!

They were highschool sweethearts growing up in rural South Carolina...never had ventured too far away from home...married on February 22, 1964 in a small little Baptist church not far from where they lived when they were only 18 and 19 years old...Daddy joined the US Air Force, my Mama worked at a bank and they moved to Goldsboro, NC (a whole 7 hours from where they grew up), they then had a baby girl, started building a home together, making memories as the days passed, moved to FL with the Air Force and then moved to Georgia and my Daddy started working for the railroad. They bought their first house in Smyrna, GA so proud of where they had started and where they had now come...they then had a baby boy who bounced into their world and life would never be the same...they bought their 2nd house in Marietta, GA where the family made more memories, cherishing sweet times together and the years passed, and their love continued to grow. In 1990 Daddy got a promotion with the railroad and they moved to Virginia Beach, VA where they lived until 2004 when they then moved down to The Villages, FL to enjoy retirement.

I feel so privileged that I had the opportunity to witness one of the sweetest marriages I have ever seen...My Mama and Daddy truly LOVE each other, they RESPECT each other and they HONOR each other. Times have not always been easy, but through the years they have clung to each other and their marriage and God has honored their faithfulness and commitment towards each other. 44 years later, they still enjoy each other's company more than spending time with anyone else.

My fondest memory of my Mama's love for my Daddy:
Every day when Daddy would come home from work, my Mama would hear him coming up the driveway in his little Blue VW bug, and she would shout through the house, "Daddy's home!" Anthony and I would then make a mad dash to the garage door along with Mama to greet him. She would always give him a hug and kiss after we kids about tackled Daddy and threw our arms around his neck first. I have such fond memories of that that I do this every day when my man comes home too. I want Ella Rose to see her Daddy and I loving each other...I want her to witness that sweetness in our marriage that I witnessed in my own parents marriage. I want my daughter to also treat her Daddy with such respect so one day she'll know how to treat her own husband with respect. My Mama modeled that in such a great way consistently on a DAILY basis.

My fondest memory of my Daddy's love for my Mama:
When they lived in VA, my Mama ended up having to go out to Denver, CO for training for Continental Airlines and my Daddy was moping around the house like a sad, puppy dog. I asked him if he was okay and he said with tears welling up in his eyes, "I miss your Mom so much." That touched me so much and I remember then as a 22 year old that I wanted to marry a man who would love me and miss me like that! And I am ever grateful to the Lord that He has indeed blessed me with a man like that in Ian.

All the parenting books say one of the most important things you can give to your children is to show them how much you love your spouse. Thank you Mama and Daddy for modeling this for Anthony and I. We always felt safe, secure, loved and knew y'all would stay together no matter how tough things got. Thank you for being such a Godly example to us through your 44 years of marriage! We love you!