HANNAHVERSARY.
To my Beautiful Wife,I can't help but start this letter with my favorite words––the same words I start and end every day with: I love you. I love every day how much we say "I love you", and love how it always turns into "I love you more", which we still play religiously two years in. Every day.I love that you tolerate my forgetfulness... if I haven't told you that already. I love that you always encourage my whims (well, most always, but I love you for the ones you don't encourage, too), and how you suffer numerous read-throughs of my books to help me improve them, because you love me. I love that you let me call you "my baby" though we both agree it's kind of a ridiculous moniker. But I can't help it––I love my baby.We have had our ups and downs, but never with each other. We seem to be blessed with ups and more ups, through good times and bad. Even when we're poor, we're rich. Even when we're sad, we're smiling. I know I am the luckiest man alive because I have you, and you should know that you will always have me for one simple reason, I love you more! You have made the last two years truly wonderful, and I look forward to the next hundred together.So Happy Anniversary, my baby! With all of my heart I love you.More,Your Baby photo by Tim Harris
YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR.
Jesse and I don't make a lot of money - that might be the understatement of the year. BUT, we don't spend a lot of money either. We are lucky to grow our own food, have our own water, and live without electric bills. So when we do need to buy something, we try to buy from someone we want to support - buying our wood stove from a local store in Tompkinsville, buying extra cabbage for kraut from our friend Pavel, getting birthday presents for the Bugtussle kids from the amazing craft vendors at our farmers market. We also try to appreciate the lesson that you get what you pay for - that it is worth the extra cost to purchase quality and value, to buy something that will last.It is in this spirit that Jesse bought me my anniversary present this year. I have been carrying around dirty farmers market bags as my purse for a few years now, and had been wanting a nicer bag for a purse/tote/carry-all. I've long been a fan of the smartly curated site A Well Traveled Woman, and she recently opened up a shop. The first round of merchandise sold out quickly, but while Jesse and I were on vacation a few weeks ago (and thus in the realm of internet), she restocked her store and Jesse promptly bought me one of her beautifully crafted bags.Obviously, it cost a little more than the canvas market bags I usually carry around. But it will last. It is beautifully made by a real human being that we want to support. And the fact that it has value will hopefully remind me to take care of it and not throw it into the back of our filthy truck. I love it dearly, and think it will be in my life for years to come. And shouldn't every purchase we make be so thoughtful?- Hannah.
ONE YEAR LATER.
Right now, I'm sitting warmly in our cabin. The new kitty is playing below me (with anything and everything), the roosters are crowing, Hannah is knitting, Wendell is barking, breakfast is cooking away on the wood stove––it's a typical morning on the farmstead. But it's a typical morning in a place we could have only dreamed of a year ago.In mid-August of last year we were asked to leave the farm on which we'd been living. And when it happened, we had no money, no farm, and no idea what to do next. So, we turned to you. And twelve months later, we have you to thank for this cabin that shelters us, and this beautiful farm we're planting.After being asked to leave that farm, we knew we wouldn't have a home or farm of our own anytime soon––we knew we'd be lucky to even be farming at all in a year. But the Smiths graciously stepped in and sold us 7.5 acres of Bugtussle. You generously pitched in tons of support and several thousand dollars. And now we don't just have a farm, but our dream farm. Exactly one year after we had absolutely no farm at all.On this unfortunate anniversary you have given us reason to celebrate and we want to take this opportunity, and every opportunity, to thank you. You guys are the best, and we truly, and very literally, could not have done it without you. Sincerely, thank you.- Jesse.
YEAR ONE.
Not only is today the end of the world, it is also our one year anniversary!Some people say that the first year of marriage is the hardest....and while I don't know if that is true, I surely know that we were put to the TEST this past year.One year ago today, were were standing together, saying our vows, overflowing with joy, dreaming about our future together on our farm in Owingsville. WELL. Things changed. We had ups and downs, highs and lows. Accomplishments and disappointments. I cried....a lot. And I honestly don't know how I could have gotten through this year without my husband by my side. He was always the one who pushed me to keep trying, to keep going, to stay positive. And we did just that....we kept trying.Now, we are on the verge of our dream come true. And even though we are still trying to process this past year - why we went through so many hardships and losses - I know it was for the best. It has strengthened our characters, strengthened our marriage, and given us a perspective for the future. Unexpected things are going to happen. And that is OK. Because we have friends and family who support us, we have faith, and we have each other.I love you Jesse, even after all this year.- Hannah. See more from our wedding HERE.