6:50 am

My alarm goes off at 6:50 every morning and it's becoming one of my favorite points in my day. 3 years ago, that statement would have never been uttered by me. To be fair, 3 years ago I probably wouldn't even be climbing into bed until about 5 am, but still. It’s completely pitch black in our bedroom and almost completely silent. Even if it wasn’t near winter, we keep the blinds and doors closed up pretty tight because we take our darkness seriously in this house. I wake up to the faint sound of our diffuser pumping out whiffs of lavender into the air and our “rain” app quietly playing the sounds of raindrops hitting the ocean/pavement/metal rooftop or whatever we picked the night before. (Does anyone else listen to rain sounds on their phones when it’s not actually raining? Isn’t it the dreamiest and best thing ever? Or is this creepy? We love it!) So my alarm goes off and I gently roll out of my nice warm nest of sheets and pillows as to try and not disturb the sleeping bear next to me and I enjoy the next ten minutes in the dark. My hair is barely hanging on to the pony tail holder that’s slowly sliding off, I desperately have to pee, and the cat is already running around chasing yet another lost hair tie along the wood floor. I put on my slippers because our floors are freezing always and head straight to the kitchen. I pull down my coffee cup, fill it with water, start up the coffee maker, and have a few minutes to start my day however I want. Which is pretty simply, I guess. I take a lap around the living room, fluffing up couch pillows, I straighten the remotes on the coffee table, I plug in our endless strands of holiday lights, maybe light a candle, and head back to the kitchen to see what kind of progress that coffee cup has made.This morning, I just kind of stood in awe of it all. I stared up at all of my drinking glasses arranged neatly in a row by size and style, and then I stared down at my wedding ring that is starting to feel normal on my finger. This simple but dreamy life that we have barely even started is the most cherished thing I’ve ever had. It was something I wanted and didn’t even realize it. It wasn't on my radar at all. And at just a few weeks into this new territory, I can’t imagine even the smallest part of it being any different. I said it for months to people, and I hoped it would end up being true, but I had a feeling life would be better when the wedding was over. I had no idea just how great it would be, though. How normal it would all become. And how safe and content it would feel. This menial morning is what gets me out of bed, literally. From the first alarm going off, to coming back into the bedroom with my hot cup of coffee, to crawling back under the covers and kissing that scruffy face curled up next to me. The face that wakes up every single morning and mumbles “good morning my love”. As I stand in my dark little nook of a kitchen, a man that loves me so much is sleeping soundly just ten feet away (snoring like a crazy person, but still) Aside from the snoring, the house is pretty silent. Except for my coffee maker and the fake rain. But these sounds, these 6:50 in the morning sounds, I wish I could play them on repeat in my head.