Who Needs Romance??

For some reason the idea of romance has been a popular topic at my house lately. Err…maybe I should rephrase….for some reason I have been talking about romance a lot lately – hubby has been begrudgingly listening.

I’m not quite sure why the need for a surprise bouquet of flowers or surprise dinner at my favorite restaurant has been so prevalent over the past few weeks. Maybe I’ve been reading one too many love stories? Maybe I’ve read too many blogs about husbands who surprise their wives with romantic gestures? Regardless….it’s possible I’ve been dropping some not so subtle hints to hubby about my need for a little romance.

And he has tried valiantly to fulfill my need for romantic gestures. For example, Saturday night he showered me with words of affirmation and complements. To which he asked, “Is that romantic?” Laughing, I responded, “Umm…not quite what I was looking for – but I really appreciate it.” Or mockingly singing a love song to me on our ride home Sunday. “Is that romantic enough for you”, he inquired. “A for effort – but not there just yet.”

Steven is a “man’s man” – it’s the reason I married him. He loves football, beef, beer, hunting, pick-up trucks, boots – all things manly. And I love that about him – it’s what attracted me to him when we first started dating. It’s what makes me feel protected and secure. It’s one of the traits I still find so sexy about him. I know I couldn’t have married a super sensitive, always in touch with his emotions kind of man.

Sunday afternoon, on our drive home from Crossfit he had me in hysterics. Just cracking me up. Always joking, almost always light hearted. So I decided right there to accept Steven’s attempts at being romantic and be grateful that he tries so hard to make me happy. I realized that I have read one too many Nicholas Sparks’ novels and I have a skewed version of what romance is. That I don’t need flowers once a month or a fancy dinner out to feel loved and appreciated. And just when I decided that I could l learn to live without constant romance…..he did it….he did the most romantic gesture I could have asked for….

About 2 am Monday morning I was woken from my sleep by whines and rustling on Steven’s side of the bed. Dixie was heaving. For a split second I lay there with my eyes shut tight – praying that she wouldn’t get sick, but knowing the signs all too well, preparing myself to get out of bed and clean up her puke.

Which I hate. I hate puke more than anything in the world. I can clean up poo and pee with the best of them – but puke just sends me into a tailspin. I gag, cough and break out into sweats. It literally makes me sick on my stomach.

So l lay there dreading the moment that I knew was coming. And sure enough, about ten seconds later I heard it. I was preparing to throw back the covers when Steven miraculously got out of bed and ran into the bathroom. Without a word he cleaned up the mess and comforted sick Dixie. Startled, I asked if I could help him, to which he replied, “No I got it. Go back to sleep.”

When he crawled into bed a few minutes later, he kissed me on the cheek and snuggled close to me.

As I drifted back to sleep, I couldn’t help but smile to myself. Good job honey…..who says you don’t know what romance is?

Once again I realized – every day love doesn’t mirror the romantic scenes played out in Hollywood or on the pages of a Twilight novel. My extraordinary, every day love consists of acts of kindness that make my day a little easier, words of affirmation that remind me what a beautiful, talented woman I am, and gentle, loving embraces from a man who still looks at me as if we were 18 years old again.

I’m not saying that I don’t secretly wish for a surprise bouquet of flowers every once and a while or hope that one day he will drag me out into the rain and ask me to dance (hint, hint) but I am a blessed woman to share life with a man who lives to make me happy. Here’s praying that never changes….