52 New Things -- Week 24 -- Our First Anniversary

I think we could pass for 32. 34? Fine. We were 37!

We got started kind of late in life. When I told someone recently that we were celebrating our first anniversary, her response was, "Oh, is this your second marriage?" Nope. Just took us a while to find each other.

Our first anniversary was pretty low-key. Kevin hates the pressure of having to buy "the perfect gift" for holidays and special occasions. He flat out begged me to tell him what to get me for our anniversary, so I said, "A hot air balloon ride." I mean, that would be awesome right? I've been wanting to go on a hot air balloon ride for years. I was kind of hoping some guy would take me on a hot air balloon ride during my 50 Dates in 50 States adventure, but no such luck.

My hubby is so cute and sweet that he tried to make it happen. He called from work one day and asked what time we'd be back home on our anniversary after my class reunion the night before. He wanted to make dinner reservations, he said.

When he came home that night, I could see disappointment on his face. He'd been using the dinner reservations as a cover up -- he'd been about to book a hot air balloon ride for the night of our anniversary . . . but in the time it took to call me and see if we could make it on time, they sold the night's flight to someone else.

"There's another company that can do it for $650. The one I was going to book was $450," he explained. "Do you want to do the $650 one?"

"Holy crap!" I replied in disbelief. I had no idea hot air balloon rides where so pricey! I love this man and wanted to celebrate our first anniversary in a memorable way, but geez . . . that's three times what I paid for my wedding dress. No thanks!

A test of how well you know me: guess which one I got.

We had a quiet dinner in a funky little place in downtown Iowa City instead, and Kevin had flowers delivered to the restaurant before we got there. He's a keeper. We ordered one of each entree and tried each other's food . . . and anyone who knows my germ issues will see how much I've grown, being married. A few years ago, if anyone tried to eat off my plate, I would have stabbed them with my fork. Marriage has been good for me in more ways than one!

When we got home, we ate our little first anniversary cake. The bakery that made our wedding cake bakes fresh little one-year cakes for their couples, which is awesome. I like the tradition of eating your top layer on your first anniversary, but not the idea of it taking up space in my freezer for a year.

Cake and roses. What more does a girl need?

We kicked back on the couch with cake and milk and watched our wedding video for the first time ever. It was taken from the balcony up front and shows our faces, but it also captures the entire congregation!! If you laughed during the ceremony, we saw it! You yawners? Busted!! It was fun to watch and to remember . . . we each have different memories of the best parts of the day, but we agree that it was beautiful and we loved being surrounded by friends and family.

So . . . onto another year of bliss!! I joke around a lot, and poor Kevin has to endure my over-sharing on his behalf sometimes, but I really do love this man. We laugh together so much, and I think that's what makes us click. We're two big dorks, and when you find someone as dorky as you are, you best just hold on for the ride. He really is a gift from God. I often wish God would have given him some stronger gifts in the cleaning-up-after-yourself department before gifting him to me, but hey, I've got quirks that sometimes make me hard to live with, too. As long as we keep laughing, I think we'll be okay.