Valentine’s Day 2018 is now in our collective rearview mirror and today we are either basking in the glow of a job well done or ruefully making plans to make sure that next year will be different.
Last week I gave you all some advice on how to make this Valentine’s Day a winner for your wife (and, by extension, for you.) I really hope you all had a great time. Of course I know that everyone is wondering how my valentines day went. Did I sweep Vanessa off her feet, or did I crash and burn. (I bet that more than a few of you are cheering for the latter!)
Today’s bonus blog post is to let you know just that, how did the Professional Marriage Coach do in his quest to celebrate a fantastic Valentine’s Day with his Professional Marriage Coach wife.
First off, did I even follow my own advice?
Of course I did! I asked, I listened, I clarified, and, most importantly I wrote it down (this is key.)
Now, fortunately for me, my wife is a romantic who appreciates the simple things, so there were no horse-drawn carriage rides to arrange, nor even fancy dinner reservations to make. Nope, all she wanted was, a card, her favourite (easy to make) dinner, and to watch one of her favourite movies (The War Room, for those who care) with me in our living room. Easy Peasy.
Since we already own the film that part was done. And since we were in Florida on vacation I really had nothing to do until we came home, and that was to buy the card and groceries for dinner, then make it. No Problem.
So I really didn’t worry about anything until Wednesday… Valentine’s Day.
I had intended to go shopping the day before but I was super beat from our drive home so I didn’t. That meant a trip into town to shop on the day of, however all the ingredients are readily available here, so I was gold.
I went to town, ran my errands and came home around 3:30pm, plenty of time to do a bit of work, get dinner ready and prepare to enjoy the movie.
While I was thawing the lobster, I went through my mental checklist to make sure I had everything I needed. Sure enough everything checked out ok. I had even picked up the chocolates she asked for in Bangor on the way home.
— Pro-tip, keep your ears open all the time up to and including Valentine’s Day for any additional desires that you can fulfil, there are some serious bonus points to be had there. —
At this point I was feeling pretty good. Valentine’s day would be a huge success. For good measure I pulled out my planner and reviewed the list I made the week before.
- A Card – check
- Plentiful Lobster Rolls – check
- War Room – check
- Big Bloomed Flowers for her new Vase …
Merde
I had forgotten the flowers!
Oddly, I had considered them when shopping earlier, but all I saw were roses, and I know from experience that those don’t really work for her, so I dismissed them.
It is now 5:20pm and I am just this side of screwed. We live in a rural area. The nearest hamlet is 10 min away, and there are no flowers there. The nearest Village is 15 min away, in the other direction. Small town, closes up early, no guarantee of flowers there. Next on the list is the closest mid-sized town 15 min past the Hamlet. I know at least 2 places that have cut flowers there, so off I run.
On the drive there I’m weighing my options. There are flowers, or there are not. If there are, great, get them and get home. If not, well, Moncton is only another 10 min down the road, and I know I’ll win there.
I pull into the Sobey’s (yep, the best bet for cut flowers around here is the grocery store) and head for their floral display. … Empty! Nothing but sad empty buckets where flowers used to be. Hustle back to the car for option 2, the IGA.
Success, they have flowers, and some bundles have ones with large blooms (as requested). I grab the meagre bouquet and grudgingly happily pay the you-really-should-have-done-this-earlier price and head home.
I pull into the driveway at 6:23pm to begin making dinner. Thankfully, lobster rolls are super quick to make. I even throw in the Caesar Salad she mentioned wanting at 11:00am (keep those ears open men!)
Dinner is served at a respectable 7:15pm complete with, card, chocolates, and flowers. Success!
We not only watched the movie, but about an hours worth of the special features (my favourite part of most DVDs.)
Lessons Learned:
Always write things down, you will forget something.
Review your list BEFORE you go shopping, to avoid hassles later.
Check your list one more time so you can get it right.
Because I asked, because I wrote it down, and because I did everything she wanted, this was (and I quote) “Probably the best Valentine’s Day we’ve ever had.”
Then we went to bed for the final thing on her list… Snuggles.
I sincerely hope you all had an equally awesome day.