Yesterday was my seventh wedding anniversary and I was going to take a look back on the day by posting photos and little stories about the day. My plan was to write it up and post it while on a break at work. However, my mind and body had other plans.

The past few weeks have been really rough. I was in charge of a week-long work retreat that was cut short by Hurricane Florence and we were left scrambling to figure out how to reschedule several days worth of work. I also had to navigate a major transition at the office as our CEO prepared to leave, all while worrying about preparing my home and family for the storm on top these regular work responsibilities. On top of that, in the last week or so, Sebastian decided to go ahead and have his 18-month sleep regression, waking us up several times a night. As you can imagine, I was one tired woman. You can see how not enough sleep and too much caffeine became the norm.

Unfortunately, it all culminated yesterday in a small panic attack at work where I spent about 20 minutes in my office with the door closed, crying and trying to ground myself. My anxiety is mostly post-traumatic, really starting after I experienced a heart attack last year, and it’s exacerbated by lack of sleep and too much caffeine, the two constants in my life for the past three-ish weeks. So, instead of blogging, I focused on breathing and making it through meetings without completely breaking down.

I feel it’s important to share this with you because it’s part of my journey. I could have ignored it and only shown you the happy highlights of life, but that wouldn’t be Nikki by example.

The good news is I’m feeling much better today. I’d still like to share some wedding and anniversary photos, though, because I’m still just as much in love with my husband as I was on October 1, 2011 when we tied the knot. I’ve already written a whole page on our entire wedding, so I would encourage you to check it out here if you have some time and read all about our theme, DIY ceremony, and reception.

Nikki by example | www.nikkibyexample.com

Nick and I dated for about 8 years before we finally decided to tie the knot and then we were married for about 5 years before starting a human family (we’ve always had furbabies!). I’ve spent almost half of my life with him at this point and I still manage to fall in love with him all over again every single day. Even the hard days.

Nikki by example | www.nikkibyexample.comNikki by example | www.nikkibyexample.comNikki by example | www.nikkibyexample.com

This year, we celebrated our anniversary by purchasing fun, matching wedding rings from enso (they’re pretty pearlescent silicone) and then sharing a bottle of wine with a  fancy Italian dinner.

Nikki by example | www.nikkibyexample.com

I’m so luck to be married to someone as understanding and patient as Nick. Even though he wasn’t with me at work while I was having my panicked moment, he was ready and willing to do whatever he could to help me through it. At dinner, we talked about who we thought got suckered into marrying them or who got the better deal, as in I think he got the raw end of the deal when he married me because he has to put up with my quirks and faults, and now he has to deal with my physical and mental health. He disagrees because he thinks he got the better deal because I’m so awesome. I think we both won the partner lottery! <3

Happy Anniversary (one day late) to us!

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