Posted at Feb 9, 2015 1:01 am
I’m next up on the Romantic Reads Hop! Thanks for stopping by.
Grab a cup of tea, or if it’s after five, a glass of Prosecco. I want to tell you about my favorite Valentine’s Day present. I got to deliver the news, but my hubby and I really gifted it to each other.
My hubby and I don’t do too much celebrating for Valentine’s Day. Most years we share cards and sometimes candy. (How much candy we share depends on how much weight we gained during the holiday season.)
But there is one year’s memory I cherish.
We had planned to go to my favorite Chinese restaurant. I was a little worried about eating out because I hadn’t been feeling well, nauseous in the morning and just not a lot of energy.
In secret I took a pregnancy test. Yes you guessed it. Pregnant.
Pregnant. Eeek. Our first-born was only eleven months old at that point. I was on birth control. (I think I had missed one pill and been on antibiotics. I don’t think they said anything back then about birth control not being effective.)
I told the firstborn. Of course he wasn’t saying much at that age, so I knew he wouldn’t spill the beans. I held the news back until our Valentine’s Day dinner date. Then I made an IOU:
On or about September 15th – I owe you one Daughter or Son.
I thought it was clever.
When I presented it to him at dinner—hubby didn’t get it. Maybe it was the shock of having another child so close together. The waiter came by—and he got it!
Eventually my hubby understood we were pregnant and was fanatically happy. ![1779183_730903940282581_1419423596_n[1]](https://www.nandixon.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/1779183_730903940282581_1419423596_n1-243x300.jpg)
We did have a beautiful daughter. Here she is as Snow White for Stavna Ballet last year.
I think it was one of my best Valentine’s gifts ever.
What was the most memorable or favorite Valentine’s gift in your life?
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Don’t forget to tell me your favorite or most memorable Valentine’s Day gift! Either given or received.
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![1779183_730903940282581_1419423596_n[1]](https://www.nandixon.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/1779183_730903940282581_1419423596_n1.jpg)
That is a wonderful story. My favorite Valentine’s Day was the one where we went shopping for our wedding rings.
Ooh Maureen, What a wonderful memory! Thanks for stopping in!
Such a beautiful, memorable story. (psst: I think you were very clever.)
Thanks for stopping by, Angi! I suppose his confusion could have been lack of sleep with child #1.
I can’t remember if it was for Valentine’s or my birthday or Christmas – but the best gift my husband ever gave me was a strand of baroque pearls. We were young with two young children and didn’t have extra $$ for frivolous things like jewelry. To this day, they are my most-cherished possession.
Oh what a lovely memory, Julie. I still wear the pearls my hubby gave me — and can’t remember when he gave them to. Thanks for stopping over!
Oh, I love it! Your “present” is now a beautiful young woman, Nan! Great story!
Thanks for stopping by and tweeting, Miranda! She is a beautiful young woman!
Love your story! I really like flowers for Valentine’s Day, or anytime, really. One year we created personalized certificate books for each other…like “good for one moonlight walk in the moonlight.” It was a lot of fun and lasted far beyond the holiday.
Thanks for stopping, Laurie! I love coupon books. And walks in the moonlight–swoon! (Unless mosquitos are out – which summers in Minnesota always involve those nasty things.)
Nan,
That’s too cute! I have a very similar story, but mine was for Mother’s Day. 🙂 My husband, who isn’t the most hearts-and-flowers kind of guy said he bought me flowers. I didn’t see any. Later, after the four kids were in bed, he gave me the Reeds Jewelers bag, which contained four separate Swarovski crystal flowers–two pink, two yellow for the the two girls and two boys. I thanked him the manner we both deemed appropriate. Two weeks later, I told him I was going to need another flower. haha.
Love, love, love that story! Hope you got your other flower, eventually. (Thus why we both have 5 kids!) The ballerina had a Swarovski crystal animal collection (which I’d like to send to her!) They are so pretty! Thank for stopping by — Kim!!
I did, indeed, get my fifth flower. 🙂
Great gift, Nan! I’ve surprised my husband over the years, but it’s the gifts to the kids every year that stand out. I do a Valentine’s Day treasure hunt for them. They get five clues they need to decode to find five small gifts. They love it.
What a great tradition, Tami. One that your kids will remember. So much fun. Thank you for stopping in!
I guess my favorite gift was a mother’s ring with my husbands, son and my birthstone in it.
Virginia, that is such a special gift. How thoughtful of him! Thanks for stopping over!
Wow! The only way you could top that one would be announcing twins! Great story Nan. 🙂 My husband proposed on Valentine’s Day, so I got a pretty great ring and he got a wife-to-be!
Tee hee – The possibility of twins came when the doctor said we needed to do an ultrasound for multiples. Multiples! My hubby couldn’t even talk. Normally we would go for lunch after my OB appointments – and he couldn’t even do that! Thanks for stopping by on your Cover Reveal day!
Nan – Great story! I would have loved to see the look on your husband’s face when he finally ‘got it’.
AE
Stunned AE! Very stunnned! Congratulations on the release. It is waiting for me on my Kindle! Thanks for stopping over.
lot of chocolate
Oh yeah – lots and lots of chocolate!! Thanks for stopping!
I love this story, Nan!! 🙂 What a great gift.
Thanks Marnee! It was the gift that kept on giving. Thanks for stopping over!
What a sweet story, Nan! Every so often I have to send my hubby to a remedial gift-giving course. Any gift he gives for the next occasion is awesome! I got a fabulous anniversary getaway the year he thought I meant it when I said we didn’t have to exchange Christmas gifts. 😉
Love that Carrie! Where can I sign my hubby up for this class? Although he has done some pretty darn good Christmas gifts. But that’s because he usually takes one of the twins with him.
My husband was a paramedic on our first married valentines day, he had to work shift that night. I went out to dinner with my mom and he surprised us at the resturant, he traded his shift. Of course my
Mom left and we had a wonderful dinner
That’s is so cool, Shari. And he got your mother in on the secret. Those are the best kind of surprises! Thanks for stopping!
Oh, Nan. That is so romantic. And sweet. Who could ever top that? I won’t even try. Thank you for sharing!
Ahh – Shelly. Your husband came to RWA – mine wouldn’t come again if I paid him!!
What a great gift, and memory. 🙂 My hubby is always much better at romantic surprises than me, like the first year we were dating when surprise-ambushed me after college classes with a ride and roses, then took me to the conservatory (where his car died and we had to boost it – he was so embarrassed, but I thought it was cute) then a limo trip out to dinner. The next Valentines he had to top it: so he proposed. 😉
Ahh Shelly, those are great Valentine’s Day memories. A limo and dinner when you were college – wow. I’m jealous now! Thanks for swinging by!
What a fantastic Valentine’s Day surprise and what a beautiful daughter! 🙂
It was probably the most expensive Valentine’s Day gift we ever made!! Thanks for stopping, Madeline!
What a wonderful story! My husband and I really don’t do Valentine’s day. At most, we go out to dinner. What I do love, though, are the cards we give to each other, because we always write each other really long letters inside the card, telling each other why we love one another. Those I treasure.
Ahh Rachel, That’s sounds like a wonderful tradition. I hope you save all those long letters! Thanks for stopping by!
What a fun (and funny) story! We also don’t celebrate VD, he has me on a pedestal every day of the year–I don’t need flowers and chocolates to know that 1 day out of 365. 🙂
Oh Sarah, how lucky you are! (Just don’t trip and tumble off that pedestal!) Thanks for dropping over.
Oooh, I love this story, Nan! It melts my heart. What a beautiful family you have! 🙂
Darcy, you have such a gooey, lovely heart! So glad you stopped by!!
What a fantastic Valentine’s Day story, Nan! And so romantic! Have you ever thought about being a romance author? LOL! Your daughter is beautiful. xx
Hmm – a romance writer? Maybe I’ll give it a try! Thanks for stopping Chris!
I loved your story and while I have nothing as funny or exciting, I have had wonderfully simple Valentines Days. Money was not always available for dinners, roses or even candy BUT there was always expressions of love.
Ooh, Thank you for stopping by and letting me know you liked Southern Comforts, Connie! (I hope you signed up for my newsletter so you can find out what date Bess’s story will be published!)
You are so right. It is the thoughtful expressions of love that matter the most.