The Anniversary "Garden"
I'm very happy to report that last night's surprise went off extremely well :)
Although Chantale got home at the expected time, she darted upstairs to see me (while I was hiding with a camera hoping to catch her reaction :) ).
So, after a while, we went down together and she took a good look at the "garden" I had set for her :)
After she opened the "main" Anniversary card (in front of the candle) wherein I proclaimed (once more) my love for her and let her know that I would Marry her again in a heartbeat, I walked through the various gifts with her starting with the statues (the card had a family of 4 birds with mom and dad fluttering over the 2 babies in the nest :) ) and the representation of the "Family".
We then moved to the SITC Collection with the card showing a beautiful bouquet including the flowers our wedding had as a theme. SITC was a show we watched together (on dvd) every night during the time she was pregnant with Kyle and just became part of our routine together as a means of relaxing/ unwinding before the end of the day (which usually meant we got to bed around midnight :) ). The slipcase collection with a "velour" binder is really, really nice.
(the card on top of the SITC box was one I gave her recently for the anniversary of our first kiss. Seeing as it fit the theme, I wanted to include it in the "garden" :) )
Next to it, a card of wild flowers and a Star Trek Next Generation novel ( A Time to Harvest by Dayton Ward and Kevin Dilmore) representing a show we both love and a nod to the experience of passing that love onto our own children. Plus, if you remember, these gifts were supposed to be given while in New Brunswick and my idea was for her to have a book she could read during the week we were there :) The fact that the novel ended up being by Dayton was both a surprise and kismet as far as I was concerned :) (hey Dayton! Now I've got something ELSE for you to sign when we finally meet! ;) )
In front of the book, under the card with the two lovebirds proudly sitting on a row of birdhouses, was a little blue box with silver ribbon :) Inside the box... a silver bracelet with 10 pearl "drops" very similar to another piece of jewelry (necklace) she had worn at our wedding. Sorry I don't have a photo of that but I expect to take one of Chantale wearing it (I wasn't thinking about that last night :) )
So, gifts expressing our life, laid out on a green tablecloth, with cards denoting a garden motif, and a tea light candle illuminating the whole as a symbol of how our love sparked this wonderful life :)
You know what? I just realized (now that I finished typing) how truly sappy or corny this may all seem... and I don't really care :) I just think it's right to appreciate the good in life :)
And, since this blog is not just about my writing and publishing, but about who "I" am, then this is where I'm going to express it!! :)
Although Chantale got home at the expected time, she darted upstairs to see me (while I was hiding with a camera hoping to catch her reaction :) ).
So, after a while, we went down together and she took a good look at the "garden" I had set for her :)
After she opened the "main" Anniversary card (in front of the candle) wherein I proclaimed (once more) my love for her and let her know that I would Marry her again in a heartbeat, I walked through the various gifts with her starting with the statues (the card had a family of 4 birds with mom and dad fluttering over the 2 babies in the nest :) ) and the representation of the "Family".
We then moved to the SITC Collection with the card showing a beautiful bouquet including the flowers our wedding had as a theme. SITC was a show we watched together (on dvd) every night during the time she was pregnant with Kyle and just became part of our routine together as a means of relaxing/ unwinding before the end of the day (which usually meant we got to bed around midnight :) ). The slipcase collection with a "velour" binder is really, really nice.
(the card on top of the SITC box was one I gave her recently for the anniversary of our first kiss. Seeing as it fit the theme, I wanted to include it in the "garden" :) )
Next to it, a card of wild flowers and a Star Trek Next Generation novel ( A Time to Harvest by Dayton Ward and Kevin Dilmore) representing a show we both love and a nod to the experience of passing that love onto our own children. Plus, if you remember, these gifts were supposed to be given while in New Brunswick and my idea was for her to have a book she could read during the week we were there :) The fact that the novel ended up being by Dayton was both a surprise and kismet as far as I was concerned :) (hey Dayton! Now I've got something ELSE for you to sign when we finally meet! ;) )
In front of the book, under the card with the two lovebirds proudly sitting on a row of birdhouses, was a little blue box with silver ribbon :) Inside the box... a silver bracelet with 10 pearl "drops" very similar to another piece of jewelry (necklace) she had worn at our wedding. Sorry I don't have a photo of that but I expect to take one of Chantale wearing it (I wasn't thinking about that last night :) )
So, gifts expressing our life, laid out on a green tablecloth, with cards denoting a garden motif, and a tea light candle illuminating the whole as a symbol of how our love sparked this wonderful life :)
You know what? I just realized (now that I finished typing) how truly sappy or corny this may all seem... and I don't really care :) I just think it's right to appreciate the good in life :)
And, since this blog is not just about my writing and publishing, but about who "I" am, then this is where I'm going to express it!! :)