Tomorrow is my husband’s birthday.  He will be 54 years old.  When I first laid eyes on Bill, I was a young girl of 23 just recently out of home with a Contiki tour of Europe under my belt but not much more experience than that, I couldnt cook, that’s for sure.  Bill was 29 at the time we met, fell in love and knew within 6 months we would spend the rest of our lives together.  Amongst dreams of having a family and sharing our lives, one dream of Bill’s was constant, he wanted to retire near some water. We often spoke of living in Geelong and as the years went by and we bought our house in Melbourne & raised our family it appeared as if this dream of living by the sea had all but dissapeared as we began renovating our family home in Watsonia.
One thing I have learned in my 23 years of marriage is not to get caught up in planning too much ahead as I often like to do, because sometimes we think we know where we are going but suddenly for whatever reason, the goalposts change or you reasess your life and suddenly things take off in a totally different direction than the one you thought you were on. This is what happened with us as we planned what to do with our house in Medbury Ave, I realised that Bill’s heart was not really in that house and that is because his inner voice was knocking loudly everytime we went down to visit Bre,  Jason, Josh & Amy who live by the sea I noticed it was hard to tear him away to return back home.
Life does indeed show you where you need to be. All we have to do is listen to our inner voices.  If you ignore this voice, it will find a way to keep nudging you towards what you are meant to be doing in life.  Its up to us to take notice and act on this feeling and you’d be surprised at how many doors open up when you are on the right path. It was Bill’s inner feelings that led us to throw caution to the wind and grab the opportunity with both hands to buy our little beach retreat. 
When Bill took a chance on applying for his current job, he was relying on the belief that this was the right path for us and I truly know that we have been guided all along this journey as everything has just happened seemlessly and easily.  I have always said, if the road you are on is smooth and it feels right, then keep going, its what you are meant to be doing.
When we began this latest adventure we did not know what this year would bring, leaving our home and going to a new area to live was a huge risk, we left our beautiful daughter behind as Bill began his new job. This was a brave move for someone of Bill’s age to begin again after being in the same job for 11 years, step out of his comfort zone into a job he was not sure he was going to like, but he knew this was the means to getting him where he wants to be.
So now, 4 months down the track, here we are at the end of the year most happy with our new scenery and about to face a new year, one which will entail yet another big move but this time a move away from our city of Melbourne which we have called home for all our lives and in Bill’s case over half a century.
At 54 I think my husband deserves the life he has always wished for. At 54 I think he has done a wonderful job of bringing up 3 children who love him along with our two beautiful grandchildren who also love their “Dandad” Yes, I think the next few years are about to show us what life should be like when you reach out and follow your dreams and don’t ever think it cant happen to you.
So….. my birthday wish this year for my husband of 23 years is this:


I hope for the rest of your life you can look back on this year and remember what it took for us to be living the dream life you have always wanted.  Walk tall knowing that you have made this happen, you took the chance and it paid off.  My life will forever be enhanced because of your dream.  My job now is to ensure that our little beach retreat is the most beautiful house on the Bellarine Peninsula and that our life moving forward is one of peace and contentment that we have both worked so hard to be rewarded with the life we imagined where we can grow old together and know that we made it happen ‘for us’

Happy Birthday my love xx