I want to remember

it's hard for me to wrap my mind around the fact that summer is gone for this year. the 10 day forecast doesn't have a day above 70 degrees anytime soon and my days of wearing sandals should be coming to an end. the leaves are changing, we have to put 2 blankets on the bed at night, and it's normal to eat soup for lunch and dinner every day for a week. 

and as much as I love all of that, I'm already nostalgic for summer 2012. it was, for a lot of reasons, the best summer of my life. I never want to forget what this summer was like, so inspired by Elise, this is what I want to remember about my favorite summer:

I want to remember how the day that I graduated college was a day that I felt so supported. in my mind, it wasn't a big deal, but all of the flowers and the giant celebration dinner and everyone that came to celebrate proved otherwise.

I want to remember that the Monday after graduation, I set my mind to train for a 5k and I did it. I fell in love with running, my body fell in love with running, and I finished that 5k on the 4th of July with Ben by my side.

I want to remember all of the bonfires, empty beer bottles, and late nights that turned our close college friends into the kind of friends you know will be there for your entire life.

I want to remember everything that went into planning our wedding, with my mom and my sister and, of course, Ben by my side.

I want to remember my wedding dress fiasco because it proved to me that there are at least 3 people in this world that want nothing more than for me to be happy, and they'll support me in whatever I need.

I want to remember all of the photo shoots, sleepovers, and driveway tanning sessions that my sister and I had, making the most of our last summer with the same last name.

I want to remember celebrating 3 years with Ben and then realizing that we were going to have to start counting all over again once the wedding happened.

I want to remember falling even more in love with Ben in this first summer we got to spend together since the first one, when we fell in love.

I want to remember surprising Jessa with Lady Antebellum tickets and dancing the night away in the rain with her.

I want to remember realizing how loved I am at my bridal shower.

I want to remember sitting down to write our love story, remembering all of the tiny details that turned a "him" and a "me" into "us".

I want to remember turning into a crying monster 2 weeks before our wedding and having my sweet Ben talk sense into me and comfort me at the same time.

I want to remember how damn full of love the week before our wedding was. people were coming into town for it, helping out with whatever we needed help with, and spending good, quality time with us. 

I want to remember how the Wednesday of wedding week was the storm before the calm. 

I want to remember how much of a blurr the day before the wedding was, but at the same time, so crystal clear and so so wonderful.

I want to remember how freaking awesome getting married was.

I want to remember the adventure that our honeymoon was: nachos y cerveza all the time, blue water, inside jokes, and all.

I want to remember the first time that I'd been to Bible Camp in two years. it was pretty much the same as I had left it and our friendships picked up right where they left off.

I want to remember coming home from our 15 days of vacation to a call that our apartment was ready for us. and with that, I want to remember the thousands of trips in and out of the house to pack up, in and out of the apartment to move in, and in and out of the fridge to get beer to calm our nerves.

I want to remember our first night in the first place we ever shared together.

I want to remember all of the nights we stayed up late, watching How I Met Your Mother, eating spoonfuls of peanut butter with frozen peanut M&M's in them.

I want to remember making this place our home: going on walks to explore our neighborhood, decorating to our heart's content and making meals together.

I want to remember starting an Etsy shop, with all of the late nights drawing cards, all of the trips to Office Max, and all of the help that Ben gave me.

I want to remember starting a life together. a real, honest to goodness, flaws and all, life together.

I want to remember this summer as the summer that was overflowing with love.