Our husbands have been friends since childhood and when I met Ashley the first week of college she jokingly typed her contact into my phone as “Ashley Best Friend”…and as fate would have it, we did become best friends. And if you know me at all, you know that in 13 years I’ve never changed her name in my phone. We’ve done life side by side for over a decade; getting married 2 weeks apart, having our first babies the same year and until recently-always living in the same town. We have endless memories…but wait- this is about Ashley and Q right (?!?)…..oops…Sorry Q.

In a recent conversation, I asked Ashley what has had the most positive impact on her marriage… her answer? Perspective.

“Early on in marriage we were in a Bible study with newly married couples, led by a couple that had been married for a long time. Getting to hear from others and knowing we weren’t alone in our struggles-along with having an older couple speak into our life had a huge impact. Honestly that probably helped us more than I know!!…. but surprisingly the first thing that came to my mind was becoming parents! Which feels silly because I know having a baby can put more stress on a new marriage!….But for our circumstances -with who we were- it was so good for us. My view of Q changed as our life changed. I watched him step into the role of leader of our family and I began to view us as a team- rooting for one another. But with both of these things the common thread is perspective. Our view of one another affects more than I realize in our marriage, so I am thankful for opportunities to have renewed perspective of each other and the Lord.”

Cheers to EIGHT years!!!