July 16, 2011. Dallas, TX…

As the last bridesmaid walked out of the bridal suite to line up for their processional, I was left alone to wait for my dad to come get me to walk me down the isle. The room was completely silent and the only thing I could hear was the deep pounding of my heart. This was it…the moment I had dreamt about as a little girl. I was adorned in delicate white lace and beautiful pearls my soon to be husband had delivered to me that morning to wear.

As I gave myself one final look in the mirror to adjust my veil and make sure I didn’t have lipstick on my teeth, I felt so confident. Yet in the same moment, I felt so nervous as the weight of the magnitude of what was about to happen fell on me. It was heavy. This was a big, big decision. 

I knew without a doubt that the man waiting for me at the end of the isle inside that church was certainly for me…but this was A LOT. The life as I knew it, as Blaire Blanchette, was about to forever change. It would be a good change….an amazing change, of course. But a change that held a new itinerary to my life that I couldn’t see the details of.

When you say yes to marry someone, you say yes to that person, as they are, flaws and all. I told Dwight early on in our relationship that I knew I wanted to be with him because life is hard, and he was the one I wanted to endure those hard moments with. What would our life together as a family hold for us? I couldn’t know…but I knew he was the one I wanted by my side.

I heard a knock and my Dad’s voice from the other side of the door call out “Blaire Bear!”…the nickname he has affectionately called me my whole life. “It’s time!” I don’t recall what we talked about as we walked through the breezeway into the church but I do remember holding onto his hand tightly and taking some deep breaths as we waited in the foyer for those double doors to open.

The song A Mighty Fortress Is Our God that I selected to walk down the isle to was being beautifully sung and as the crescendo of the bridge “We will keep our eyes, on You, we will keep our eyes on You. We will set out hearts on You, We will set our hearts on You” built, the doors swiftly swung open.

Honestly, I don’t remember physically walking down the isle. I’m pretty sure I could have floated there. The only thing that I can recall is locking tear-filled eyes with my love who was waiting for me at the end of that long walkway of powder blue carpet. It was as if no one else was in the room but us.

Even his dad, who was his best man, commented on the electricity he felt in that moment as he witnessed it first hand. We chose not to do a first look and I am so glad we didn’t. There are several moments in life that are heavenly glimpses like experiencing the majesty of the mountains, holding your newborn child and seeing your spouse for the first time in their wedding best waiting at the end of alter for you. 

A mighty fortress is our God, a sacred refuge is your name. Your kingdom is unshakable. With you forever we will reign. 

With each word of that song sung, I made my way closer and closer to my groom. As I reached my destination at the end of the isle, Dwight mouthed “I love you” to me. We then exchanged vows and rings, Dwight sang me a song and we took communion together. The declaration of husband and wife was made and we happily walked out of the church to “Oh happy day!” And what a happy day it was.   

7 years have now passed and our days together vary from the mundane to the extraordinary. We’ve moved states, bought a home, started new careers, traveled the world, had some sweet babies and danced in the kitchen.

We’ve also fought for days without resolution, gone to bed angry, sought professional counseling, changed 1000’s of poopy diapers and clung to each other in the moments that threatened to tear us apart. While some may say my moment of nervous tension in the minutes leading up to my wedding ceremony was a bad thing…I would argue that is was a healthy dose of the reality that would lie ahead of us. Anyone who has been married longer than a few days can attest to the struggles that come with intimately sharing your life with someone else. But even in those brief seconds of nerves, I had confidence in the man I had given my “yes” to and the God who was holding us together. 

We are far from faultless people with a perfect love story…but our hope in the work that God is doing in both of our lives to transform our hearts into vessels that hopefully resemble something more like His…keep us saying “yes” to each other. 

We will keep our eyes on You. We will keep on our eyes on You… 

I love you, Dwight Laing Rogers, and choose you everyday. I love your joy, your loyalty, your kindness, your friendly disposition, your leadership and your infectious laugh. I love hearing your crazy ideas you share with me about once a week (even though I laugh at most of them) and when you walk through the doors with a big bouquet of flowers for me. I love how you always hold my hand in the car and tolerate me in the mornings when I am a big grouch. You bring happiness to my days and a steady, unwavering love to my heart. I love walking though this life together with you as we keep our eyes on Christ.

Happy 7th Anniversary, my love.