My Simply Romantic Anniversary

My husband and I celebrated our 31st anniversary last Monday and I think it was our most romantic yet! No, we didn't cruise the Caribbean or go to the beach or the mountains. We stayed in our local area and spent a wonderful time talking and reminiscing about our childhoods. Let me explain.

We couldn't travel this year because we had some financial issues so we agreed to keep it simple. My husband left the planning mostly to me and I took off with it. We started our day eating breakfast at a new restaurant in Covington, the closest town to where we live. Then, we headed for the Pink Palace Museum in Memphis, TN. My husband and I are native Memphians and remembered when all there was to the Pink Palace was the house that Clarence Saunders (founder of Piggly Wiggly) built but never lived in. Now there is a large, modern addition that houses lots of great exhibits. I got to "play" in the traveling, interactive music industry exhibit. We also went to the IMAX movie "Deep Blue Sea" which was breathtaking. After the movie, we grabbed a hot dog at the cafe and went through the other exhibits in the addition, all the while talking about what we were seeing and experiencing. We saved the best until last and went to see the exhibits we knew as children in the Pink Palace mansion. What a wonderful time of sharing happy memories of our childhood!

After the museum, we went to our favorite restaurant and each ordered our favorite dishes. We spent an hour talking and laughing about anything and everything. I absolutely loved every minute of it! We then packed up and drove home talking and laughing some more. All in all, it was one of the best, most romantic anniversaries we have ever had. And it didn't take much money, only time.

Now time is what romance is all about. Time focusing all your attention on each other. You don't have to go "out" or have an elaborate candlelight dinner in order to have romance. All you need is the other person and T-I-M-E, time. It doesn't even have to be a lot of time. Romance is measured in moments, not hours; minutes, not days; quality time, not quantity of time. It can be as simple as bringing something from the other room for another or fixing a favorite supper. It can even be as simple as turning over the remote for an evening and not complaining. Anything that helps your spouse, boyfriend or girlfriend know that you are willing to pay attention to them and you have listened enough to know what is important to them and what is not.

So next time you wonder about what to do to create a little romance in your life, do something simple for your significant other and see their eyes light up because you took the time to think about them.