We Vow

I received our wedding pictures this weekend!!! What a treat!!!

I thought I would share a few of them here along with something very close to my heart - our vows. Luke and I decided to write our own vows to each other and I'm so glad we did. Hearing what Luke wrote for me was one of my favourite parts of the day! :)

Trying not to cry during Luke's vows! (I did anyways!)

Reading Luke my vows

Luke's vows:

Alyssa,

     I never knew I could love someone as much as I love you. You are the most amazing person I have ever met! From he moment I met you, I knew you were special and that I had to pursue you. I've been praying my entire life for God to reveal my true love and He has in you. I love your warm and gentle spirit. I love the way you make me laugh, even if it's because you are teasing me. I even love you when you are angry with me. You are such a beautiful mystery to me and I'm overwhelmingly captivated by you.

     In front of God and our friends and family, I vow to love you and pursue you with all my heart. I vow to find new ways every day to express my love for you. I vow to make you laugh and be there for you when you cry. I vow to never take you for granted. I vow to passionately protect and serve you and put your needs above my own. I vow to be the loving and faithful husband you deserve. I'm so honoured to get to spend the rest of my life loving you.

Alyssa's vows:

     Ever since I was a little girl, I dreamt of meeting the man of my dreams - my prince. I wanted him to pursue my heart and valiantly fight to win my affection. I stand here today, still that little girl at heart, and in awe of the man that God has chosen for me.
     As we embark on what I know will be the most exciting, most challenging, and most beautiful adventure of our lives, I offer to you my heart - my fervent adoration, my truest respect, and all the depths of my soul.
     I vow to love you more and more with each passing day. To fill your life with warmth and tenderness in the happiest times and ever more so in the hardest times. And when those hard times come, I will take your hand and walk with you through the valley, ever looking to Christ for our strength. I promise to keep Him at the centre of my life, and of this marriage, so that together we may enjoy life to its full.
     I vow to be your friend and confidant - to stand behind the decisions you make and to wholly support you in all that you do. I will respect you for who you are, not who I want you to be.
     Luke Kleczynski, you are my answer to prayer. A servant, a leader, a man with the ability to love selflessly and unconditionally - a faithful model of Christ.
     These things I commit to you, no matter what lies before us, for now and forever.

First Dance

Forever.

The Greatest

Well, this week was not good for blog posting! :) It was a crazy week (just like yours, probably!) On the whole this week, one topic continued to come to my mind. Childlikeness.

Not child-ISH-ness, but child-LIKE-ness.

Can I first just say how much I am loving the whole "being married" thing?? It's like living with your best friend ALL THE TIME!!

I actually asked a dear friend this week - "When am I supposed to start feeling like I'm married?" Because when people ask me how it feels to be a "married woman" I truly don't know what to say! I mostly just feel super blessed to finally be living with my best friend. I don't feel like I'm "married" to Luke, I just feel like we're walking through life together in the most amazing way possible. I suppose this is a good thing, and as cheesy and cliche as it sounds, I am honoured to be married to my bff!

This past week we decided that in the midst of the craziness, we were going to have a "best friend night" - just like the sleepovers you have as a little kid. I made baked macaroni and cheese for dinner and brownies for dessert. We sat on the couch and talked for a while and played some games on my computer (I seriously LOVE online tetris!!) And then we settled in with some popcorn and watched the classic Disney movie Peter Pan! We stayed up late (as sad as it is, 11:30 is pretty late for us now!), we ate some comfort food, we laughed at Captain Hook and that crocodile, and we just enjoyed each other's company for the night. It was wonderful to have a night where we didn't allow ourselves to think about the pressures of the next day or what we "needed" to get done.

Jesus calls us to be child-like. In Matthew 18 verses 3 and 4 He says that we must come to Him as little children.

But even more so, what are the characteristics of a child that makes them the greatest in the Kingdom?
Humility - Jesus comments on how the little children are marked by humility, as we should be.
Innocence and Purity - though born into this world wicked and sinful, children still embody what it means to be pure and innocent.
Trust - unless they have been taught otherwise, children will naturally believe what other people tell them, especially those in authority.
Small - recognition of our own insignificance as compared to the infinite glory of God.
Eagerness - they yearn for more.

I pray that our marriage would be child-like.
Not that we will be eating junk food and watching movies all the time - although it is a refreshing treat every once in a while! But that together we would be marked by these things :
the ability to unabashedly put our trust in God and in each other,
humility when we do something wrong, but especially when we do something right,
the innocence and purity and delicate beauty of a marriage surrendered,
continually giving glory to God and not trying to steal it for ourselves,
and the hunger and passion to pursue all this and more.

And with that, I thought I would share a few pictures from our honeymoon. 
This is Luke and Alyssa - being child-like! :)

Making Mrs. Potato Heads in Downtown Disney

Mr. Pretzel Head

The Dumbo ride - a classic!

Everyone's favourite mouse!