My best friend (also known as my soon-to-be wedding photographer!) had a real heart for motherhood. She was looking forward to running her own photography business, which would give her plenty of time to get married, run a home, and have a family. I had dreams too, but they were more geared toward traveling the world, being the emperor of something, and basically making enough money to buy my own tilt-o-whirl for the backyard of my mansion.* I wanted a husband and family too, but it was going to have to fit around all my self-centered goals. As different as we were, we did share several common dreams, like owning Kitchen-Aid Mixers (check) and staying friends well into old age (double check).
One afternoon I very specifically remember getting into a conversation about when we thought we would get married. Keep in mind, we were 16! If my 16-year-old daughter asked me when I thought she'd get married, I'd say "not while you live under my roof," as I shoved a math textbook and a healthy snack into her hands. But we were totally unsupervised during our high school lunch break, and thus the following conversation:
Me: I think you'll get married around age 23.**
Keep in mind, I had no way to prove this would happen, I just knew she wanted to marry at a reasonably young age.
Mandy: (pleased with my prediction) Hmm, I think you'll get married when you're 32.
Me: Huh??
I was #horrified, of course hashtags didn't really exist back then, so I was just regular horrified. I remember being really surprised and downright offended. 32 was a lifetime away...I mean, since my lifetime so far was only 16 years. I thought by 32 I'd be a dried-up old woman with nothing to offer in the romance department. Oh to be young and naive.
On July 1, I celebrated my 32nd birthday.
I can now say with lots of authority that I am in no way dried up (thanks to good skincare), I have plenty to offer in the romance department (if you think Redbox and a pizza count as romantic - which, for the record, I do), and I have never looked better (thank you Weight Watchers). Oh, and I'm getting married, so I guess Mandy knew what she was talking about.
Am I sad I didn't meet someone sooner? I guess maybe, but honestly, if I couldn't be with Milton, I'd rather be single. He's that great! Need proof? Let me tell you a little story. A few weeks ago we tackled our wedding registries. One of the last items I registered for at Dillard's was a Vera Bradley duffel bag. Unfortunately the pattern I really wanted didn't come in the duffel size, so I registered for something else. About a week later, Milton and I were sitting on the couch when he got a notification on his phone for some eBay auctions he'd been watching. Unbeknownst to me, he had tracked down the duffel bag in the pattern I wanted and was working on securing one for me....which he did. Yeah, I know. I can't believe how lucky I am either.
And that wasn't even part of my birthday, which for the record, he made incredibly special!
The day started with a happy birthday text of a picture of an adorable French bulldog. That was quickly followed by another text letting me know that he had not gotten me a puppy for my birthday. That was probably wise since I was already busy naming my new fur baby. Later in the day, I received a delivery of beautiful roses. I love getting flowers delivered to my office. I know that makes me a little bit of a whore, but I don't care. I love showing the world that somebody thinks I'm special. Hence this blog...
Then when I got to Milton's that night, he had 4 beautifully wrapped gifts waiting for me to open. I was going to wait until after dinner, but my inner 6-year-old was strong, and I just couldn't wait.
Milton did such a good job! He got me some cute PJs, a new iPod speaker for my office at work, an iPhone charging dock since I was jealous of his, and a French bulldog calendar. He took special care to get an iPhone dock that wasn't too masculine. This one is a soft blue and matches my bedroom decor perfectly. He also apologized about the calendar since the year is half over, but I immediately decided to fill in the pages with all our special days and memories. It will be a really great keepsake. Then we headed to dinner downtown at Vast. It was amazing! Neither of us had been before, but we will definitely go back....once we've saved enough money. Milton had made the reservations weeks before my birthday. I love a guy who makes plans!
That night, he told me I also had a mystery present coming. I was already so spoiled by the day that I couldn't imagine more. I had even sort of forgotten about it, but yesterday it came.
Milton listens.....like really listens. One afternoon at the grocery store, I was complaining that nothing ever had my name on it. This has plagued me since my childhood vacation days when I had to watch longingly as other kids selected key chains and bike license plates perfectly emblazoned with their various suburban monikers. Lately, I've had the same flashbacks as I've stood in the checkout lane at the grocery store, wishing that someone could "share a Coke with Mariah." Damn you, Coke! But....Milton listens.....like really listens.
Obviously, you'll just have to take my word for it that he spelled my name correctly (my real name, that is). I was so surprised that he thought to have this made for me. I immediately put it in a place of honor on my bookcase, where I will treasure it always.
And if the Zombie Apocalypse hits, I'll have a little caffeinated treat in my supply stash.
* I still really want a tilt-o-whirl. It also wouldn't suck to be the emperor of something. And as emperor, I'm sure I'd get to travel the world. Maybe my dreams haven't changed as much as I thought.
** By the way, she got married at 24, so I was basically right. As usual.
