A night in Italy

Tonight is our anniversary. 14 years = 4 states 7 cars 4 houses 3 pets and four crying out loud!
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Chris came home and reminded me that we had to leave the house at 6:30 even though we have dinner reservations at a mysterious venue at 7:30.

Why? I asked. You'll see, he said.

The kids were hyper while they ate their dinner giggling about the fact that mom and dad were going on their anniversary date.

Gus: Mom, kiss dad!

Me: OK (Chris and I gave each other a 'showy' kind of kiss for the kids.)

The boys: ( laughing ) EEEWWWWWWWHHH! Nasty!

While the boys were seemingly disgusted at the fact that mom and dad had kissed, Jack hurriedly jumped up from his chair to get HIS kiss....then came Nick...and then Gus! They ALL wanted a part of that action. Afterwards they all laughed at themselves and went back to the table to finish their dinner.

Me: Chris, open your anniversary gift.

Kids: Yeah Dad, open it! It's so cool! We know what it is and it's awesome!

Gus: You'll be a sexy beast in it! (Nick taught him that phrase and he repeats it during the most inappropriate times...but it's pretty funny.)

Chris: OK

The gift I purchased for Chris was a leather jacket. I was totally at a loss as to what to purchase my groom after 14 years of marriage, so I decided to take a risk and buy him something that he would NEVER buy for himself. (I kept the receipt.) I knew that he didn't really like it when he saw the gift, but the kids assured him that he looked great in it. (Quite frankly, Gus was right. Chris looked like a sexy beast to me when he put it on.)

Chris: I don't know...I look like a metro-sexual in this.

Me: Ha! No you don't! But think about it, if you'd rather buy a tool with the money, go right ahead. (Chris has been working on building a bathroom on the 3rd floor and is in need of certain types of tools that I'm totally ignorant about.)

Chris: Now you open your present.

Me:OK....(Chris hands me a metal tin which I recognized was from my favorite store: Brighton.) SW---EET! I exclaimed! Chris had purchased a gift card for me to use for anything in the store. We left the house early to make that purchase.

I bought some earrings and a cell phone case that I had been wanting for awhile. I was totally happy and thrilled with my husbands thoughtful gift, but knew that we still had dinner to share, so we started walking toward a mysterious venue that only Chris knew about. We walked fast since it was so cold outside and Chris started talking: "You know how much you loved visiting Rome and how much you love anything about Italy and Rome?" We stopped in front of Maggiano's Italian Resaurant. "Yes, of course", I replied. "Well, I've brought you here because you love Italian food and" Chris opened the door of the restaurant where we both found ourselves in front of a display Christmas tree with numerous gifts placed underneath. Chris reached under the tree and dug through the gifts and pulled out two wrapped items and handed them to me...much to my astonishment "these are for YOU." I opened the first gift and cried as I read the title: Pope John Paul II in the Vatican. I love this gift because every picture has a place that I'd visited this past summer while on pilgrimage there. The second gift was a book on Tuscany...a region in Italy I plan to visit one day. Chris had secretly placed the gifts under that tree in Maggiano's the day before...as a surprise. What a wonderful surprise!

I can't wait for the next 14 years! Goodnight all ;)