February 14, 2016

Happy Valentine’s Day!!  Some people will say that Valentine’s day is just another made up holiday, a holiday that the chocolate and flower companies have created to help their bottom lines after the holidays but for Michael and I it has always been a special holiday.  One that we celebrate every year.  It was 31 years ago that Michael surprised me with a steak dinner complete with baked potatoes and sautéed mushrooms and “officially” proposed to me and gave me my engagement ring. Michael had gotten over his first instinct to run and we had decided, weeks before that we were going to give this marriage thing a try since I was expecting our first son and he wanted me to have that memory of him proposing.  I still remember walking into my parents family room and the table was set with my mom’s best dishes and candlelight.  Michael was in a suit and tie and I was speechless.  My brothers and sister were oddly absent and my parents gave us some privacy for the evening.  I remember talking about how nervous we both were and wondering out loud if we were making a mistake.  You see, we were just supposed to be friends.  We talked about our hopes and dreams and what we both wanted out of the relationship.  It was a night that I will never forget.  It was the beginning of our journey.

 

As the years went on we re-created that night and celebrated on Valentine’s day every year. Most years it was a night that we would get dressed up to have dinner.  Some years it was harder than others..one year I was VERY pregnant and was just hoping that our 2^nd son would soon be born, it was especially hard when we were raising teenagers and we had to work around their social schedules and then the year that Michael had his accident and was in the hospital I got take out Chinese food and we shared dinner together in his room and when he was released to come home my dad cooked “our steak dinner” for us.  It is easier for us now since we are “empty nesters” and we have a little more freedom. Our children have all been warned about just showing up or they may be in for a surprise!!

 

For Michael and I, celebrating the “little” things, like Valentine’s Day is what has helped keep us together for 31 years.  It is reflecting on the past and seeing how much we have grown and how far we have come.  It is looking forward to what the future holds for us. It is remembering the reason I accepted his proposal years ago and how much the love that I have for him has grown over the years.  It is realizing that I really did marry my best friend.