Everything’s Coming Up Roses
Ladies: I am sorry to have to tell you this.
Men: I am every sorrier to have to tell you this.
But….
My husband gets me flowers alllll. the. friggin. time. Okay, that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but he definitely puts the “man” in romance. Now, before you all beat me with miniature violins while screaming:
let me clarify that I am not bragging, simply SHARING. Sharing is caring okay?!?! And truth be told, it took me a while to develop a full appreciation for the showering of sweetness. I LOVE it now and am so grateful to have such a doting husband…. but, when we were first dating, sadly, my response was more like:
I’m not a scrooge, it’s just that he went a weee bit overboard and did so many sweet things I wasn’t used to…. For instance, ev-er-y morning when we were dating I would wake up to a page long “love text.” Then, he would often leave me an old school handwritten note on the table as well. I basically ended up with such a large collection I could have started a cupid exhibit:
Oh yeah, there’s more folks:
Fast forward to 2.5 years of marriage, I freaking lovelovelove this stuff and shoulda backhanded myself for my lukewarm appreciation. I mean, it’s slowed down to a “normal” amount, but I think we’ve hit our love note stride. Now, you might be thinking “foolish newlyweds– just wait 30 years and you’re lucky if he looks in your general direction.” But I have to disagree! I believe this is part of his nature and always will be, even when he is Mr. Gray…..which leads me to today’s theme (ABOUT DAMN TIME RIGHT): Mr. Grays can STILL be romantic and oooeeyygoooeeeyloveeeydoveeey.
Check it….
My cousins Ray and Diane (who are more like aunt/uncle to me) just had their 50th wedding anniversary.
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50.
I literally got tired just typing that. I mean, this many years of having the covers stolen is definitely the ultramarathon of love & dedication. Personally, I’m just pumped Abe and I have made it over 2 years and can still look in each other’s general direction — well sorta– my husband basically just stares off to the left or the right, or anywhere where I’m not looking when I talk.
Lazy-eyed half-listener.
Flower-giving excessive love note writer.
Ya win some, ya lose some.
So back to Mr. & Mrs. Gray. To celebrate this momentous occasion, their children threw them a huge celebration. But not just any celebration– this was a mini wedding reception! Why? Because they never had a real one.
In 50 years of marriage, this sweet couple has been through the ringer: Ray’s deployment to Iraq, 30 years in night school, and the loss of an adult son. But the upside is their faith and devotion to each other has made them stronger in love than ever before. The love was ooooozing out of them during the celebration. And specifically, what touched and amazed me was Mr. GrayRay’s romantic expression and honoring of his wife throughout the entire reception!
He starts off strong, like Ryan Gosling in “The Notebook” strong:
THEN, after this epic proposal, he goes on to describe the 10 things he has loved and appreciated most about her over the years, starting with the serendipitous story of how they met (later illustrated by their son below):
In front of all their family and friends, he continued his praise by giving her all the credit for every aspect of their relationship and for essentially, being the glue in their marriage. It just made her sparkle. And beyond Ray’s heartfelt words, the way he looked into her eyes while he danced with her set the bar for any love story. The whole evening was a public display of romance and love.
While it’s adorable to see a young couple smoochin’ in a mall, it’s moving to see an older couple holding hands walking down the street. They have lived through the “for better or for worse” and have chosen every single day to stay committed to each other. That’s real love — a daily decision made over and over and over saying “I’m with you.”
With that being said, in the midst of Mr. & Mrs. Gray’s anniversary celebration, I found this oh-so-true sign:
I adore this saying because it DOES get better with age….and that includes ROMANCE! <3 <3 <3
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