Ten Years Of Wonderfulness

(Kim, Thanks for the idea to enter this post over at Real Life. Anyone else care to brag about their man?)
Have you ever laughed so hard that you couldn't breath? Have you ever laughed so wildly that you drooled? Have you ever laughed for so long that you gave yourself abs of steel (or at least should have because they hurt so bad)? Have you ever laughed this hard as a result of feeling more freedom than you ever thought possible? Well, prepare to be jealous... I have.

This last weekend my wonderful Hubby, of ten very eventful years, took me out on a four day getaway. We flew my sister in to watch the kids (which will lead to tomorrow's rant on Delta Airlines), and ran away together. We started our evening walking around downtown Seattle, WITHOUT KIDS =) Our first stop was an art gallery, WITHOUT KIDS.... Ok, I'll stop that, but it really is a whole new experience for me doing all this without kids. It was so fun going to an art gallery. I used to stop and look around every art gallery that came my way, so this made me feel young again. While there I learned of an art method that I had never heard of before called Encaustic, which is a style of "painting" with wax. I collected all this great information on the artist and the technique and even had a small printout of my favorite piece to share with you but, alas, it was not to be as I left it all on the table of the last restaurant we went to. Bringing me to the food...

I was finally able to enjoy a plate of the famous Seven Flavor Beef at Wild Ginger

"Flank steak fragrant with the seven flavors of lemongrass, peanuts, hoisin, chilies, basil, garlic and ginger is quickly dry fried resulting in a complex, intensely flavored beef". And boy was it intense. I have never tasted anything so jam packed with flavor before. It was delicious.

For dessert we went to The Met and had what I personally know to be the best Creme Brulee that humans can make. They nicely translate it for you and call it burnt cream. I could try to describe it but I won't. Just trust me when I say that it is good enough to make you roll your eyes while saying, "Oooohhhh, yummmmmmmm," as you lick your spoon. Better share it because you'll never be able to finish anything this good all by yourself.

Then ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------No, I'm not going to tell you EVERYthing. I'm just not that kind of a lady.

Skip to driving around in a really cool rental car (much cooler than my minivan) through beautiful scenic hills and trees, into a quaint little place called Leavenworth. Ya, vould you like some bratvurst? It is a verifiable tourist trap, but fun nonetheless. Every building is built to look like you are in a Bavarian village. Even the McDonalds had cute little white washed spires poking out of its village-like roof. There were a lot of fun shops there for window shopping. We bought some fudge at the Fudge Hut, I highly recommend the Mint and the Raspberry Cheesecake fudges (and I don't even like fudge). Then we went to a fun Australian shop they had there and DSSH bought me two of my favorite presents. An awesome hat that totally screams LIZ and a Cane Toad coin purse. Yeah, I'm weird like that.

After eating some authentic but tasty enough beef rouladen, we headed towards the final destination: Wapato Point Resort on Lake Chelan. We had a simple yet cosy one room suite. The bedroom was up in a loft over the living room which was fun (it made me feel like a kid. I always loved loft rooms as a kid). The resort was lovely, the scenery was magnificent, the atmosphere was extremely peaceful and happy. All around us were people that were fully intent on having fun and enjoying life. And this all brings us to the laughing, to the freedom, to the sheer exhilaration that can only be found on a ........

JET SKI

DSSH told me we were renting a jet ski and foolishly, because I'd never ridden one, thought "Aw, I wish he would have rented a boat instead". I should know by now never to second guess my amazing man because he is always right. We went out on the water and DSSH drove first. He was being smart and testing the vehicle. Seeing how to make it stop and how it handled and then we took off down the lake. Lake Chelan is a great lake for Jet Skiing because the gorgeous thing never ends. All around you are mountains and lovely homes but the lake is so long you just never seem to reach the end or the beginning of it. So, we drive out forever while I enjoyed the ride and the view. Then DSSH makes a brash mistake. He says the two words that he will regret for weeks to come, "Your turn". Now, you have to understand, I grew up watching Miami Vice and James Bond. I also have no fear of death. I also LOVE to be scared. Need I say more? I squeezed the gas as far as it would go and hit every wake at an angle for maximum lift and I have never screamed and laughed so hard in my life. As the wind was rushing through my hair, and the water was splashing in my face, and every jump and turn brought the possibility of broken appendages, I laughed. Every time DSSH yelled over my shoulder "You are crazy!" I laughed. With every increase of speed I laughed. With every thought of, "We're going to die!" I laughed. I laughed so hard that at one point I had to stop the ride just to regain my breath. Never have I felt so free. I tried to explain it to DSSH. In that crazy moment there were no seat belts, no speed limits, no yellow or white lines, no children, no dishes, no boundaries, no responsibilities, no manners, no fashion, no hair dos, no makeup, no phone calls, no alarm clocks, nothing but holding on for dear life and racing against the worries I had left behind. I raced them, and I won. Never, if I live to be 100, will I forget what my DSSH gave me that day. Never will I be able to show him my full gratitude for sitting behind, letting me risk his life, while giving me the courage to be so crazy. Because through it all, I knew that as long as he was behind me we would be ok. He let me be as wild and crazy as I needed to be just then, while making sure that I never went too far over the edge. And for that I can never love him enough.

With my DSSH by my side I know that I can survive many more years in this crazy world.

Thank you for this, my love.