10 Years married, 14 years together in total. I think that's saying something. I've always known that Raul and I would last forever, but as the saying goes -nothing in this life is certain but death and taxes. So we do our best to sustain a marriage, one that we can call happy. Our marriage is far from perfect, it takes a lot to strengthen ours but in the end, it's worth fighting for.

For today's prompt: "In the past 10 years, what have I learned about my marriage? What would I like to change?"

They say that the first year is the hardest. But for us, I would have to say that based on my experience, it's not just the first year. As a married couple, Raul and I faced hardships that really tested the glue that held us together.

From our first apartment hunting, to infertility, to my diagnosed anxiety, our first child, and then the second, domestic issues, the constant moving (5 times to be exact), our daughter's hospitalization, building our own home, and the list goes on and on. And let's not forget the little quirks and pet peeves, but those are the things I can choose to ignore.

Sometimes.

Ten years felt like a long time, but it went by in a blink of an eye. It kind of feels like we were just getting started. Between our busy schedules at work and our kids, we hardly had enough time to spend with each other. From the day we got married, so much has changed in us, and it's nice to know that we were in it together. Both good and bad.

For the past 17 years that I was working freelance, Raul was used to me working from home, taking care of the household and the kids, even then, finding time to have some "us time" was close to impossible. And when I took on a full time job, it was even tougher to find the time to be together. Our roles and priorities have changed, and it really forced a huge adjustment.

We have always 100% supported each other, encouraging each other in whatever we wanted to do -like the time I wanted to sell liquor flavored cupcakes.

LOL.

In our marriage, there was a whole lot of compromise and trust. Raul has poured in to my artistic endeavors in every way that he could. He is and will always be my number one supporter and greatest fan.
Looking back at the past decade, we have had our ups, downs, and sideways, and one thing has remained constant: Respect and Trust.

This morning, as we both greeted each other with a "Happy Anniversary", we made an unspoken promise to each other that we will keep on pushing forward.