By Angel Kane
Wilson Living Magazine
This past month, the hubs and I celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary. And it went something like this….
“Do not buy me flowers! You know that it just makes me mad when you do. In fact, don’t buy me anything that I haven’t picked out myself.”
“Duly noted. No flowers for you or anything that you have not specifically requested. And may I ask, what am I getting for putting in my time?”
On our anniversary, I received flowers and tickets to a musical that I’d never heard of.
And therein lies the secret to 20 years of wedded mostly bliss. It’s taken two decades to work out the kinks but it goes something like this…
1. Not everyone puts their clothes in the laundry basket or washes them in the gentle cycle. The first few years this will almost drive you to divorce court. I mean, how hard is it to NOT wash all my clothes on HOT!!! But as time goes by you realize the fact that he’s washing his clothes, your clothes and the kids’ clothes is a pretty big deal. In some countries, wives that don’t wash all the clothes get stoned. So, your favorite white shirt is now pink and could fit on a doll… look on the bright side, you aren’t facing a firing a squad this morning. Even the negatives, could be worse.
2. My Dad spends every Sunday afternoon washing my Mom’s car and then filling it up with gas. Whenever I mention this to my husband, he reminds me that while my Dad is doing this, my Mom is cooking him a homemade dinner. Never compare your marriage to someone else’s; also, pump your own gas and like it!
3. Not everything that you hear in your head should come out of your mouth. This one is hard because that girl in your head, she knows everything! But the one thing she doesn’t always know is when to keep her mouth shut. Every once in a while you should duct tape her mouth and stick her in the trunk of your car. Because no one wants to hear it, her or you 24/7.
4. He has his thing and you should have yours. Let him watch the game, play golf, work on his car because that means you can go shopping, watch Hallmark movies, and play Bunco with the girls. If he didn’t have his thing, he’d be tagging along on yours. And taking the Husband to Home Goods always ends badly.
5. The best part of marriage is you have a built in wingman. Grocery shopping, moving furniture, sick kids, crazy family, homework battles, putting up the Christmas lights. Marriage means someone to not only have your back, but most importantly someone to help work your list!
Twenty peach colored roses (because he knows peach is my favorite color) and tickets to a Broadway musical written by the creators of South Park (because he knows I secretly think that show is funny.)
I hope for 20 more years… that go something just like this….
To read more of Angel and Becky’s columns go to www.wilsonpost.com.