My five year wedding anniversary came and went. Huuuuuuhhhhhhh? I’m still confused about it. 5 years. 2 kids. No one was pregnant before we got married. ?!!? No wonder I’m exhausted.
August 2009.
In an effort to make my husband’s daily homecoming from work a bit more, shall we say, ‘anniversary-ey’ on the exact date this year… I enlisted my two favorite little ladies to serve as mascots alongside a few simple tricks that any tired and busy mom of two toddlers can do to fondly celebrate THE DAY she became a wife…. children included.
1) EAT DINNER ON YOUR WEDDING CHINA. It doesn’t matter if you order pizza, just enjoy it on your china (adults only, I should say… let’s not get reckless here with toddlers). For the record, I made a beet & goat cheese salad (his latest fave), extra-buttery rice pilaf (yum) and grilled some halibut that absolutely turned out awful despite the fact I’ve made it several times before and it’s been delicious. So there. On the china, regardless of what happens.
Dishes, Arte Italica. Flatware, Oscar de la Renta. Napkin & Mat, Pier 1. Charger, some random home store in downtown LA!
2) REPLICATE THE SCENE. Not that I was going to order florals for a night at home, but get your tush to the market and snag some moderately-priced flowers that are reminiscent of your memorable night all those years ago. Yes, we had hydrangeas at our wedding (even though Madonna made news a few years ago for hating them… but I didn’t care since she wasn’t invited to our nuptials). Yeah, I lit some candles too.
Cheap: 5 year anniversary blooms.
3) FIND SOME FLOWER GIRLS… FAST. Since we already had the dresses from earlier this summer, I figured WHY NOT. Plus, you can snap some fabulous pictures to commemorate the occasion. Yes, I dressed up too… in white. (I would’ve tried to squeeze into my own wedding dress if I didn’t have it permanently framed and hanging on my bedroom wall. Yes, I really do. It’s awesome and totally insane at the same time.)
A part of me can’t believe that they WEREN’T at our wedding!
4) DON’T UNDERESTIMATE THE POWER OF SURPRISE. When you hear the garage door open (and know he’s home) frantically shoo your fab kids to “HIDE!!!! UNDER THE TABLE AND YELL SURPRISE WHEN DADDY WALKS IN!” (This was confusing to my girls, since I’m always nagging them to *not* hide under my fancy dining room table.) Just be careful that they don’t bump the table so that your pristine and fragile place settings topple off and break. Not good. (Almost happened here. But it didn’t. Phew.)
Don’t bump the table. I’m serious: DON’T.
5) POP A CORK AND ROLL THE VIDEO. Sipping from our same champagne flutes that we sipped from at our wedding (can’t remember the last time I busted those out), we ate dinner (in our dresses), made a mess, toasted our bubbly, peeked at some old pictures and finally… WATCHED OUR WEDDING VIDEO. WITH. OUR. KIDS. Crash! Nostalgia, gratitude and lots of dancing (right there in our living room) followed.
William Yeoward crystal.
So why the heck did I bother to share all of this with you? Some results from the evening: 1) My girls now are fascinated that Mommy was once bride (just like Ariel the mermaid!), 2) We had fun family time on a weeknight without even leaving the house, 3) I was reminded why I love my husband so much, 4) I saw our own little girls dance ‘at our wedding’ (thanks to the video), and 5) we created a special MOMent that I will never forget. I will look back on my five year anniversary and remember EXACTLY what we did. And isn’t that the big point?
(Of course, we got to go out just the two of us the next night. Big bonus there… even though I threw up right after… another story I’ll share at some point.)
HOW DO YOU MAKE ANNIVERSARIES SPECIAL WITH YOUR KIDS?
