Catching up: Tony and I

Tony and I celebrated our 11th anniversary at the beginning of September. We always said we would do something big for our 10th, but then we had Cooper, so then we talked about doing something big this year, but that just didn't happen. The biggest problem with an anniversary at the start of school is I'm so stressed out about the boys and myself starting classes, it's really hard for me to set aside time for just Tony and I to spend together.
My mom did keep all three boys overnight for me and Tony and I were able to eat a dinner out. We went to a Japanese place he'd heard good things about. The food was good, but it was a busy night with only the owner preparing sushi, his wife waiting tables, and a high schooler in the back washing dishes. The service was slow....very slow. It took us an hour to eat our food and both Tony and I were tired from working all day, so it wasn't the most romantic of nights. We spent Labor Day weekend camping at Belfair state park. It was busy with lots of kids, bikes, and noisy groups. But things did calm down our second night there so we did scope out some possible campsites for next summer.
I have to say I'm just happy to have had the opportunity to celebrate our anniversary this year. After everything that has happened, I know it is less about what we did to celebrate, and more important that we actually did celebrate eleven years together. Lots of people are wondering how things are going, especially since I haven't been posting much. Things have been going OK between Tony and I. There's lots going on with both our jobs and the kids that it isn't easy to stop and focus on each other. Tony's been moved back in since May, and we've gotten back into our routines. One thing has changed though; how we react to each other is different now that we've reconciled. Things that irritated us before still irritate us, but how we deal with that irritation has changed. It is easier for me to let the small things go and understand Tony better now. We're both quicker to think of the other person at times and we apologize easier and more sincerely to each other. Tony did a great job being at home with all the boys while I was at outdoor camp for a week. We've been able to support each other through our struggles instead of resenting them.
Like I said, not perfect, but we're making things work. There are still things we are morphing and working on, but I don't know of any marriage that isn't working on some aspect of it.