This year our Valentine's Day is going to be a bit subdued. I've been working a TON on a project at my day job, so I've not had much time to build Wendy a giant heart shaped mirror, table, outdoor display, or other crazy show of my affection. But if I weren't working so much, you know I totally would have. :-)

It is a little bit of a fun time of year around our neighborhood. Similar to Christmas, many of the various boutique storefronts get into the spirit of the Valentine's Day celebration with creative displays to lure shoppers. Take a look at some of our favorites.

The Hour Cocktail Collection

Helen Olivia

The Dog Park

Olde Towne School For Dogs

Olio Tasting Room

Beyond the neighborhood flair, Wendy and I received one special Valentine that we wanted to share with you all. 

Though Wendy and I aren't particularly old (regardless of how we may feel), we've been in each other's lives for quite a long while. This year marks the 17th year since we began dating as Juniors in high school, and our wedding anniversary in October of this year will be our tenth. Wow, how time flies.

In looking back on 17 years together (yes, that's pretty much half of our lives), we always make particular note of the four year stretch of our time in college at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. This period of our lives, where we were first independent and living without our parents, helped to shape who we'd become. It also helped us realize that this high school boyfriend and girlfriend couple could maybe, just maybe, make a pretty good team as husband and wife in the real world.

In 2002, as young 24 year olds, we got married on Miami's campus to recognize and celebrate the place where our relationship was shaped. With that ceremony, Wendy and I also gained status within our Alma mater as an official "Miami Merger."

We're not overly crazy alumni or anything, but we did really enjoy our school and the experiences we were able to encounter while at Miami. As a tribute, and as part of Miami Merger tradition, we even had an "M" groom's cake (though not in the shape of an M as is more typical).

In the classic sense of the term, a Miami Merger represents a couple that met while attending Miami University and went on to get married. It's a badge of honor for students that fit the bill, and something celebrated in many ways. And oddly enough, the statistics on how many mergers there have been are somewhat shocking. Roughly 14% of Miami alumni are married to each other. That's over 26,000 couples if your calculating. And this number is thought to represent the largest number of college alumni from any one school married to each other.

Though Wendy and I were together nearly one and a half years before we packed up our families' cars and headed south to Miami, we're still considered a merger since we both attended and are now married.

In recognition of our membership in this "exclusive" club, Wendy and I receive a Valentine's Day card every year to celebrate our merger status. In past years we've received puzzles, magnets, or photo prints of the campus. This year we received the following poem and card.

It's a nice way to be reminded of the wonderful times we experienced together in college, and that our time together there can continue on in our lives today.

How did you meet your significant other? Any similar stories to us out there? Who knows, maybe you're even a Miami Merger like we are. I hear there are about 50,000 of us out there.

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William H. McGuffey House, 1833

As two bright eyed and bushy tailed teenagers, Wendy and I began our college career in the late summer of 1996. We both chose to attend Miami University in Oxford, Ohio (yes... the one in Ohio... Miami of Ohio if you must) because it had a reputation as a good school, it's a state run university (which meant tuition for in state students was lower), it was far enough from home without being too far, and it was a large school, but not too large. Besides, I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life, so a liberal arts school with a small but strong applied sciences department seemed like a good choice. Oh, and since my high school sweetheart, Wendy, decided to go there first, I was "following" her there (you don't know how many times people assume I was actually following her).

From our arrival on campus on that hot August day in 1996, throughout my time walking to and from class and living in the various types of student housing, I soaked in the "college experience." I don't mean I was going wild and partying. Far from it actually. I was on my own living independently and doing things on my own schedule. I began to develop friend circles in classes and dorm life, and I was in a fraternity, which helped me develop more long-lasting friendships and taught me the value of better organization and public speaking. I was pretty solidly in my transition from teenager to adult. I just didn't really realize it at the time.

The whole time we attended Miami, we were surrounded by evidence and reminders of the history that ran through the university. Be it the "1809 room" in the Shriver student center, aptly named to commemorate the year the university was founded, the countless plaques or signs around campus denoting the age or significance of buildings, or the general architecture of the campus and nearby houses. We may have been surrounded by all of this information, but this does not mean we really noticed it or appreciated it while it was staring us in the face.

Lewis Place, 1838

During this year's return trip we took a stroll around our favorite spots on campus. On our stroll I was walking around snapping pictures for this blog post, but also taking in what I had missed so often while walking past these very same places on the way to class. 

Among the various student living dorms spread all over campus, Miami is home to two dormitories that possesses the label of "oldest student housing dorms in the United States." Stoddard and Elliott halls have been in continuous use for student living since they were constructed in the early 19th century. Currently, they are undergoing a massive gut renovation, which is a little sad, but I assume necessary to allow them to continue as student housing.

Stoddard Hall, 1836

Oxford is a small college town in rural Ohio, and Miami is a university with a very prevalent greek community, so some of the coolest and biggest places are owned by fraternities. This is just a byproduct of a Greek community that has been around since the mid 1800s and was able to capitalize when real estate was quite affordable.

Beta Theta Pi property, circa 1825-1835

Older buildings living life as housing for 18-22 year old guys unfortunately means that many of the places, especially on the interior, have seen better days. However, most tend to keep the facade of the buildings updated and appropriate to the period of the house, as is the case with the Beta house above, and the Alpha Delta Phi Victorian below.

Alpha Delta Phi house

While on campus, we also took a stroll over to Miami's "Western Campus." Western, while actually on the eastern part of the school's campus, was formerly "Western College for Women" from 1855-1974. In 1974 Western became part of Miami University. Western is an extremely pretty part of Miami and we liked it so much that we selected it as the location of our wedding back in October 2002.

There is a chapel on Western called Kumler Chapel. It is a large stone chapel modeled after classic Romanesque French buildings. Kumler was built over several years but completed in 1918. Wendy and I selected this chapel for our ceremony due to its peaceful setting on Miami's campus, its significance to our lives, and for how pretty the chapel itself is. Now it holds an even more special place in our hearts.

Kumler Chapel, 1918

This was Lulu's first time to Miami, andt I think she thoroughly enjoyed running around. One legend in Miami's massive book of lore and superstition involves a giant seal on the ground in the middle of campus. The belief is that stepping on the seal is bad luck, and if you step on the seal, you will fail your next exam. Lulu threw caution to the wind and decided to not only walk, but lay on the seal, taunting the ghosts of Miami to give her an F on her next test. We've yet to see how this works out.

We're both quite glad we decided to make the trip to see the school. Having graduated more than 10 years ago, it is a little bittersweet because it reminds us how quickly life is moving. But at the same time, we really enjoyed walking back in time but a little bit, and also looking at the campus with some new-found appreciation.

There is a saying around Miami University and among the students who've graduated. When someone not familiar says something like "Miami in Ohio? That's strange, Miami is in Florida." The response is often, "You know, Miami was a University before Florida was a state." This nod to the history of the school is something I was never able to fully appreciate while attending, but am now able to look back on and realize that this aspect of our campus life allowed me to feel more at home while attending school. Perhaps being surrounded by the interest and architecture of the university and neighborhood helped to cultivate my early appreciation for all things old. If so, it is yet another non-academic nugget I was able to take away from my four years spent at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio (yes... the Miami that is in Ohio).

Perhaps you went to school on a campus that was simply full of history? There are so many all around the country, but I doubt that very few students tend to appreciate the importance of their surroundings. Did you have a similar experience in school? Maybe you actually appreciated your campus, or your campus was ultra modern and you felt out of place? Let us know a little bit of your story.

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