A love letter to my husbandfeatured

Traveling as a family doesn’t seem like a particularly romantic endeavor, and it’s true that romance in the usual sense is not a typical part of our days. Despite this, I have found travel to be one of the most enriching and life-giving parts of our relationship. Almost a year ago, I wrote a letter to Jeff trying to capture why that is the case, and in honor of his birthday yesterday I thought I’d share part of it here:

To me, travel is making the choice to fall in love. With people and places, sounds, tastes, and moments. These are love affairs that will last a lifetime. And I know this because I will love you for my lifetime.

When we travel, I don’t only fall in love with the people and places we see. I fall in love with you. I experience you in new environments that make such an impact they redefine who we are. I get to experience the giddiness and newness of loving you when we first met alongside the strength and familiarity of the love I have for you now. You are irrevocably tied to all the places we see and to my joy in traveling. Without you, I would still want to see the world, and I would still travel. With you, my soul is free to take root in new places because you’re setting down your own roots alongside mine.

When we travel, I have the unimaginable gift of falling freely in love with each moment that presents itself because the people and person I love most in the world are part of those moments.

*Photo taken by Molly. Backpack in the foreground and a cute baby photobomb make this a perfect capture.