Flashing lights, orange barrels, neon vests, and big machines are all tell tale signs that a construction zone is coming up. During my two years driving between St. Cloud and the cities I have seen many different projects being worked on. Apartment buildings and highways are the main two that come to mind. The landscape changes with the passage of time. The work in the beginning takes a lot of time, and honestly, it often makes me wonder if they are even working at all sometimes. But after the foundation is finished and the plumbing and electrical are run. the frame flies up and then solid walls tend to follow. Of course it also is long after those walls go up before the building can open up. Appliances, painting, flooring, etc etc etc all need to be in place. I bring this up tonight because I have been doing a lot of reflecting on my and Jayme’s situation.

In many ways, a relationship goes through stages of construction as well.

1. Planning and landscaping: Here you are preparing yourself to build a relationship on, and for me this meant figuring out what was important to me, what I liked in a person, what I didn’t like. This step is for making mistakes, and while I made plenty, each one of them prepared me and my heart for the relationship that was going to be my last.
2. Foundation and utilities: Once you found the right “contractor” it is time to start and develop the basis of your relationship. people can see the changes right away, the newness of what is going on, but what you cannot see is the care taken to insure what is started is on level ground. Jayme and Me had an immediate attraction and a magnetism that showed others around us we were happy. Happy is nice, but it will only burn for so long without a solid foundation to rely on, so we invested painstakingly into each other and what would become the basis for our relationship. Trust, honest communication, and thoughtfulness. These pillars keep our relationship from crumbling under the weight of the future.
3. Framework: Once the foundation is set it is time to build memories and a life together. The frame is small things, not of substance, it is time together, rides in the car, dates, concerts, and planning a future. The memories that you make come quick and will continue to grow, rising faster and faster. and while they are the bones of your relationship, their main goal is to support the substance within.
4. Interior finishing: These are the pieces of our relationship you cannot see, but are what mean the most to us. This blog has given anyone who reads it a glimpse into what makes us function and love, but it is just that, a glimpse. They cannot see the moments we celebrate our success together, the attentive daily conversations about bowel movements or who said what at work today. While the framework and exterior of our relationship shows the world what we represent, it doesn’t show how we have gotten here, The little things, the details that make our outward appearance what it is.

And just like the greatest structures in the world, relationships that stand the test of time all need renovation and to be cared for. So I intend to always care for the relationship me and Jayme have built. 

2017 has been great to me and Jayme and it is barely 26 days old, I followed her in getting a new job (at the same company) and now we are poised to move in the next two months as well. Life events are abound, but we still have found time for fun. An impromptu happy hour turned into a 8 hour bar hopping fest full of pool, darts, and cards (oh and of course a little karaoke). It was a fun night catching up with friends and making sure those bonds don’t break with our move.

Tonight we have another fun event ahead of us, Josh Abbott band concert in Minneapolis, and then two more nights of celebration (basketball with Jayme’s friends and a game night at a friend’s house Saturday). The hits just keep coming and I couldn’t be more excited for all that is happening and is going to happen.

The Namesake for this post is inspired by a song (go figure) by The Band Perry. Now as a people, pioneers were brave, they went out into the wild to establish a new life in an uncertain place. they were seeking something special, something original, something personal. No one pioneer was the same, they came from different places with different pursuits, but their uniting factor was their adventurous risk and willingness to commit to the unknown dangers ahead. Now moving to St. Cloud and starting new jobs might not be on par with crossing the continent in a covered wagon, but our real adventure is in loving so fiercely. What we seek is commitment, and that requires a willingness to open up yourself to another. They can see your weaknesses, your failures. the Vulnerability is real and scary. But like the Pioneers, the reward is worth the risk.

That same vulnerability and openness that can cause pain and suffering is the same that brings us the indescribable joy of security, love, and companionship. And while we might have scars to show for our journey, we also have someone who cares for each one.

I quick late night post before heading off to bed. Jayme is fast asleep feet from me as I type this, rarely is she in the room for these events, but between her delusional sleepy haze and her horrific vision I think I will be okay. I wanted to write quickly about tradition and what it means to me.

Previously I talked about making pancakes in the morning, or an annual family excursion. But tradition is different from traditions to me. While all those traditions (such as going up to Mille Lacs with Jayme’s family) will be something I look forward to, I am looking forward to us being the tradition. Heisman, Nobel, Pulitzer, these names are legendary in their fields, they ARE tradition. Now I never expect our love to inspire a trophy or award, but I want it to be synonymous with the greatest of love. And that tradition and legacy are created with each kind word, selfless gesture, and unprompted moment of romance. This love is hard work, it takes effort, but if I want our love to be steeped in tradition, we need to steep our tradition in love. That is a challenge that I am up for.

It finally happened! Jayme got a job up where I am working. this means we can officially start the countdown to an easier commute and the next chapter in our lives. we have been in what has felt like an endless holding pattern for the length of our relationship. Always waiting for the next step in our lives. Not that we were wasting time, but that we were waiting on something to come along and effect us. this is one of those things. I am glad to say that today is one of those days.

This job is more than just an opportunity for us to start a life, but a great opportunity for Jayme working in a field she is passionate about with a clear path to something greater. It was so great to get the news from her. I could hear the pride in her voice as she realized a dream come true. I also heard relief, gone now is the stress of “what happens next”. we are ready to move away from worry and towards tomorrow. Of course it is bittersweet to leave the close proximity of friends and some family, but the move will be great for us and allow for our relationship continue to blossom. It’s times like these that remind me that we can see success. 2016 was marred with several disappointed ends to job prospects for both of us. We kept faith in ourselves and what we wanted. That focus and drive led to Jayme getting this job, it is what has kept us going when things have been tough, but most of all, it is what is at the core of this relationship, unwavering and unfiltered dedication.

I am so proud of the woman Jayme is and continues to grow into. She is simply what makes my world go around. So I end this post early because today is one for celebration, and there is only one person I want to celebrate with and she will be walking through that door at any minute. Cheers to you my babe, I will always be your biggest fan.

Welcome to 2017! It is a new year and we celebrated in style with a wedding at a fancy ballroom in Duluth. The event was elegant and the perfect way to ring in what is sure to be a year of next steps and big surprises 😉

It was hard to think that Jayme and I have been together for a year, but even harder to think that there was no day in all of 2016 that she was not apart of my life for. I don’t mean hard as in it is difficult to have her share all those things with me, but that what still feels new and fresh is already seeing its second NYE. I have seen our relationship grow and change with the seasons, I have watched as situations and circumstances have pushed us to new heights and tested our resolve. We have struggled and argued, but never settling on dismay. We always carry the lantern, we always look in, we always pull together. I do not know all that is in store for us with 2017, Hell I don’t know what is in store for next weekend, but what I do know is that we will go through it together. No matter what the storm we will weather it together. That girl is mine and I am hers and it shall be that way from now until forever, and that is enough for me.