20th Anniversary Vacation

Instead of the usual FAF, I'd like to share my good news. My husband and I are celebrating our 20th wedding anniversary this month. So, we are going on vacation alone (no kids). We are going white water rafting in Oregon on the Rogue River.  I'm so excited!

I love adventure. White water (WW) rafting is so much fun for me! When I was 25, after graduating from college, I decided to get trained to become a WW rafting guide. I went through a 2 week training period in Colorado, in which I was on the water all day -- often 12 hours a day.  The thrill of guiding a raft through the class 3 and 4 rapids each day seemed to complete me somehow.  I would awake before my alarm, jump out of bed and quickly get ready for the day. Since I'm a night person, not a morning person, this is very uncharacteristic of me.  I could hardly wait to start the day. Rafting! I love it. The freedom of the outdoors, the challenge of navigating a rapid, the team effort necessary to make it, the excitement of conquering the big waves. Rafting is in my blood, it feeds my soul.

At the end of two weeks, I became a certified WW rafting guide.  However, I missed my husband so much that I choose not to take a job guiding. It was an extremely difficult choice because the river sings so loudly in my blood.  And yet, I have not regretted it at all. I would choose my husband a thousand times over anything else. He is my Love of a Lifetime, my partner, my soul-mate. I love him deeply, passionately, and I always will. I am blessed beyond measure to have the one I love as my mate. God is good.

So, this year, Sean surprised me with an anniversary trip with OARS. It is a special trip that has a gourmet chef along to cook our meals as well as a vintner to pair the wine with dinner. It is perfect! We will be rafting all day, then having a splendid meal with perfectly paired wine at night. The Vintner (wine expert) tells us all about the wine and about wine pairing during our meal; my husband and I both enjoy wine pairing. It is amazing how different food can taste when properly paired with wine. It is going to be a trip of a lifetime!

I will not be blogging for at least a week while I'm on the river. You can imagine me blissfully seizing the moment and sucking every ounce of fun out of my adventure. Until next time... Godspeed!