We're Off!

Oh, my post title makes it seem like we’re off to the races or something equally stimulating, but just the opposite, we’re off to a weekend of calm and relaxation. Today Ray and I will leave behind all the hustle and bustle. Work commitments and family commitments will take a back seat, and we will take time out for just the two of us. We are going to hide ourselves away from the world, or at least from the world of our everyday lives anyway, we are off for a weekend of treating ourselves to ourselves without distraction.

Ray and I were fortunate to find each other thirty-eight years ago, and I am very lucky that he feels our relationship is still a worthwhile investment, enough so that he still tries to find ways to surprise and delight me.
On May 26 we will be married thirty-six years and Ray has planned this weekend away for us to celebrate. We usually celebrate our Anniversary with a weekend in Manhattan, but this year when Ray suggested a weekend in Mystic, Connecticut with a side trip to Newport, Rhode Island I was happy for the change from the stir of the city.
I absolutely love Manhattan, I love the theater district and restaurant row, I love Greenwich Village, I love Rockefeller Center, I love St. Patrick's Cathedral, I love all the old brownstones, I love the shopping, I love "our" hotel that we usually stay at, and I love walking the streets of the city, I even love zig-zagging around people and traffic. But as much as I love Manhattan and the excitement of the city, right now peace and tranquility are calling out to me. I’m looking forward to a restful weekend. And I’m looking so forward to doing the Cliff Walk along the ocean in Newport, and I love the quaint little shops of Mystic Village, and the drive there and back is so pretty, and that is something I’m looking forward to also. And I love spending time with Ray, I love how comfortable we are with each other. I enjoy his company, and not only do I like the fact that there is nobody else I’d rather be spending time with, I also like that Ray makes me feel A-okay about myself. There’s something so reassuring about looking at yourself through the eyes of someone that is in love with you. You don’t spend a massive amount of time picking yourself apart and harping on only the negative when you have someone that spends his time dwelling on you in only a positive sense. I never used to like the term ‘significant other’ but now I'm really so fond of it because I actually do feel so very significant to my husband, and he is so very significant to my life.

I used to take our relationship for granted all the time (I have to admit, sometimes I still do). I remember when we were going together for a while, I just took for granted that we were going to get married, Ray’s proposal was expected. I do realize though that our relationship is very unique, especially when I hear about other couples that have grown apart over the years. We’re certainly not teenagers anymore, nor are we young ‘honeymooners’ but there is something much more wonderful about a comfortable, easy, familiar love. We are a very relaxed, kick-off-your-shoes couple, we are time-worn and rumpled, we are faded youth but not faded love, we are dreams come true. I’m not saying we’re perfect, our life together has certainly not always been easy, and it certainly has not always been very pretty. But I like all things ‘shabby chic’ anyway and that is how I like to think of our marriage and our relationship, and that is how I think of us as a couple, we are shabby chic, we are perfectly imperfect. It’s not only amazing to wonder how love can hold on for so many years, but when I think of all the storms our marriage has weathered over the years, I have to wonder how could love hold on trial after trial? God has truly Blessed us because not only has love held on, it has grown and deepened over the years. Each ordeal that should have forged a wedge between us has miraculously served to bond us even closer together. I know that what Ray and I share is extremely rare and I am very grateful for this extraordinary Blessing that is our marriage.


FRIDAY FAVORITES

I had to include my Friday Favorites in this post because this week my favorites are just a few of the things that my husband made for me and I love them all!


Ray made this pretty little heart-shaped trinket box for me years ago. I’m not sure if you can tell from the picture but the top is mirrored.



Ray also made this game board and this box with a slide-top opening to hold game pieces.




And this is a little telephone table that Ray made for us just before we were married.
He’s a very handy guy to have around!


One other thing I have to add to my Friday Favorite is my son Erik, as today is his birthday! I won't make the mistake of writing a post about him though, I'll just say, "Happy Birthday, Erik!"


Speaking of Friday Favorites ~
Fellow bloggers (or rather Sister bloggers, I had to look up the female equivalent of ‘fellow’, I came across some very condescending terms at first, then I came across ‘sister’ and liked that very much!) Okay, Sister bloggers, I’d love to see and hear about any/all of your favorite things! Favorite recipes, favorite flowers, favorite hobbies, favorite prayers or bible verses, favorite places to vacation, favorite things to do, favorite things you’ve acquired, a favorite place in your house, any and all favorites you may have!
And I’d also love to hear everybody’s plans for their weekends!


Our Weekend Forecast:

Mystic, Connecticut and Newport, Rhode Island and just we two!