2008 was a great year for me.

In 2008 I came home from Iraq: Alive.  That was a good event.  Coming home alive.  In 2008, I also met the most significant person in my life to date.  The most important person that would change the way I lived, the way I thought, and ultimately what and who the most important people in my life are.  Just weeks after coming home from Iraq, I met the most beautiful, most caring and wonderful woman that I have ever met.  She has taught me more about me than I would EVER have thought that I would learn about myself.  A year later, we married!

In 2009 I married the most significant person to me in my life.  Sarah Marie.

We grew.

In 2010 we got our first son: Kenneth William Lee.

In 2013 we got our second son: Bradley Roland.

In 2016 we got our first daughter and last child:  Addison Marie.

That was an addition to our cat, Maverick, and then after Addi was born our dog (my service dog), Jax.

Seven years.

Seven years ago I married my wife.  I made Sarah Marie Bechtol into Sarah Marie Holmes.  She became my everything.  She became my rock, my love, and my life.  We still see each other in a way that is only a way that two people can love each other can look at each other.  We have had several ups and downs, bumps and bruises, and of course we have had our outbreaks.  Especially when we try to do a home improvement job together – it is not pretty!  But we still love each other!  We do a lot of projects together, and we do great work together!

Yesterday, we were driving home from visiting my brother in Milwaukee, WI.  Which is not as easy of a drive as we thought, and Sarah and I were talking about the “Seven Year Itch.”   I had heard of it, but never understood its meaning.  So I googled it today, and I want to let you know that that is not the case.  Seven years and going strong!  We have enough love together that we are going to be going strong forever.  You can quote me on that!

According to UrbanDictionary.com:

Let me tell you that we are not bored!  We have tons of fun with our children!  We go to a lot of places that make us appreciate us being together as a married couple.  Like the Indianapolis Children’s Museum.  There is no way that we could do that, and have fun, as a single parent.  Nope, no way, no how.  Being married is what makes it fun with our children!  We also have a very healthy date night!  We spend more money that we should on sitters, but we go out and have fun watching movies, going to the VFW (because why not?), go out shopping (that sucks, but only is cool because my wife loves it!), and of course we go to the brewery (currently our favorite is Thomas Stiegletz).

People that succumb to the “Seven Year Itch” have no interest in their significant other.  Sarah and I share many interests together, more than just our children.  We share the Chicago Cubs, Game of Thrones, Indianapolis Colts, movies, church, and of course our love of Christ.

If it was not for our love of Christ we would have never been together.  Ask us sometime we will share our story with you!  (Or it may be another blog at some point, and I am pretty certain it is in the about me page!) Through Christ we can do all things!

Jesus Christ is at the center of our marriage.  We keep Him in the forefront, and we are blessed to go to church every Sunday reaffirming our faith.  Taking communion with each other, and acclaiming our faith as role models to our children.  Sarah and I work very hard to be the role models that God intended us to be.  This in itself makes us a stronger couple and the seven year itch is nothing more than the a funny joke.  Which makes it more funny about this is because while we were driving home there was horrible electrical storm in Chicago, making our 3.5 hour trip to almost 6.  But we enjoyed each other’s time together, even if we were white knuckled and lock kneed.

Seven years.  Seven years later.  We have grown.  We have grown together.  We have grown together in Christ.  Our family has grown, they grew up, as do we.

My wife is my love.  We have been married for seven years.  Together for eight.  And only death will do us apart!

Enjoy the seventy photos ten for every year we have been married.