Saturday night we went to Jenny’s parents’ house for a cookout to celebrate Father’s Day, Eric’s and Jim’s birthdays, and Jenny’s parents’ anniversary. Some of their family friends came over, as did Katy and Eric. As usual we had a great time. On the way home, we reflected briefly on what seems like an anomaly in America: the longevity of our people’s marriages. On Monday Jenny’s parents will celebrate their 36th anniversary. Two other couples there were just behind them, at around 33-34 years. My parents will celebrate their 35th this December. My mom’s parents are approaching their 60th. Jenny’s dad’s parents have already reached 60 years. Naturally none of these marriages is perfect, but they’ve all been strong enough to last for longer than I’ve been alive. We are grateful to have such a stable family foundation on both sides and hope to celebrate our own 50th anniversary someday. We believe God intends marriage to be permanent and committed on our wedding day to make our marriage a permanent bond. Marriage is supposed to be like Krazy Glue, not a Post-It Note.

More than one writer has said that the most important thing parents can give to their children is a strong marriage, which provides them a sense of security and a host of other benefits. After Brenden arrives, we plan to work hard to keep our marriage strong and not make him the center of our universe, no matter how cute and wonderful he might be. So if you’d like to babysit sometime so we can go on date night, we accept with gratitude.