This is probably going to be a shorter post this week, but I am hitting an important milestone and I definitely wanted to talk about it today.  Past the break, I take a good look back over the past year as I continue to move into a new phase of life.

This weekend is very special for Ashley and myself.  One year ago, we tied the knot and officially became Husband and Wife -- though in our hearts we've been married to each other much longer than that.  Much has happened to us over the past year, sometimes to the point where it surprises me that it's only been one year.  Having married a fellow nerd, I'd like to look back at some of our more nerdy highlights over the past year.

We started off our life together by traveling down to Myrtle Beach, SC for our honeymoon.  We were there only for a couple of days, but I wish we could have stayed there for longer!  We made sure to sprinkle in plenty of nice dinners and being with each other, but we definitely sprinkled in a few nerdy aspects as well.  For instance, we played mini golf at the Dragon's Lair golf course; playing through several medieval themed holes as they spiraled around this castle looking structure.  It was during our honeymoon that I got a glimmer of hope that Ashley would one day play Munchkin with me as we found Munchkin Zombies in a store while we were looking around.  She saw it and mentioned that version she would be more inclined to play than the other sets that I already had; so of course I bought it.  We also stumbled upon this place called "MagiQuest", which ended up being this real-life fantasy game that we very much enjoyed playing.  In it, you create a wand and carry it around waving it at objects to activate items or collect objects that you can use to complete quests (I talked about it in depth on an episode of Relative Dimensions if you are interested).

Ashley and I try and attend Baltimore Comic Con every year, and we attended this year as well.  This year we felt like pros - knowing exactly which booths to hit first and try and make sure to get some good deals.  Ashley managed to find several of the premium World of Warcraft action figures for only $5!  That's a heck of a bargain!  Baltimore wasn't the only convention this past year that we hit, as she went with Chloe and I to the LEGO Kids Fest in Richmond back in February.  We all had a great time looking through the various LEGO brick statues and activities that they had scattered through the convention hall.  I know there will be many more conventions in our future; from Baltimore to Boston (I've got her possibly interested in going with me to PAX East next year) to one day perhaps even San Diego.  I've heard her say a couple of times that she wants to go to San Diego Comic Con one year.  One year, I hope to take her there and explore it together.

One of the passions that I've developed over the past year has been my love for board gaming - and Ashley has done her part to stoke the flame.  I already mentioned up above that she showed some interest in learning Munchkin, one of my favorite games - well later that year she finally broke down and I taught her how to play.  Now, its a game that we can both play with Chloe when we get a chance to sit down and spend some family time together.  She even surprised me one day when I came home from work with a new Munchkin set - Star Munchkin - for no reason at all!  And imagine my happiness when I woke up on Valentine's Day to find a copy of Ticket to Ride waiting for me.

So as you can see, Ashley and I have definitely had our moments of geekiness together this past year.  It has definitely been a wonderful year, and I look forward to sharing many more wonderful years with her!