Guess What I Got For Christmas?

In the wee hours on Christmas morning, a not-your-everyday sort of e-mail hit my inbox. But the e-mail sat there, undiscovered for hours and hours. Poor thing.

When I finally checked my phone at some point on Christmas afternoon, I walked into the living room where my family was gathered and announced, "WE HAVE THE WEDDING PHOTOS!"

It was like Christmas came all over again. We rounded up the crew, found a VGA cable, wired a laptop to the TV, brewed some coffee and browsed thousands of photos for over two hours. It was awesome. We dubbed Mr. Seashell's uncle the "Where's Waldo" of our wedding, popping up in a ridiculous number of photos. We laughed so hard we cried at certain series of shots. We reminised. We recalled pieces of the day we'd forgotten. We poured over the photos for so long we had to take bathroom breaks.

You want to see too? Ok, fine. But I'm not blowing the top on my recaps. Those are coming soon!

 Photos by Blink of an Eye Photography

What did you get for Christmas?

Letting Go

As Mr. Seashell and I settle into married life, I've started to realize there's something I need to get better at: letting go. I'm learning to let go of me and embrace we.

My independence is of paramount importance. That's partially a tribute to how I was raised, and partially speaks to how I operate in the world. If I decided I want to do something, up until recently, I was just going to go ahead and do it. The idea of asking someone for their feedback didn't feel romantic, it felt childish. I struggled greatly with moving from me to we.

Mr. Seashell, on the other hand, embraced the we from the start. Being part of a team clicked for him immediately. "Checking in" over the purchase of a sweater didn't feel disempowering, it was for the greater good of our future, finances, and he actually liked my input. (That's probably a silly example, but a perfect one - the idea of asking someone if I could buy a sweater makes me batty as a grown, working woman. I have to ask you if I can buy a sweater?! This is a conversation?)

There have been many instances where I have had to challenge myself to "let go" of my previous mode of operating, and accept that I am now part of something greater than myself.

Has becoming a we been a process for you too?