For some women, chocolates, flowers, or a nice dinner date mean the world on Valentines. For me, its a letter. These penned missives aren’t quickly signed “Love, or I love you, love your husband”. I receive actual love letters. And they aren’t limited to holidays, or my birthday.
My husband & I met in ninth grade to be exact. However, we began to date in August, after our high school graduation. We went to separate colleges (Baylor & North Texas), but saw each other every weekend, with the exception of 3 non-consecutive weeks during our collegiate career. You could say we are inseparable. Mostly opposites: He (Gemini) likes hunting, is really into politics (majored in political science) watching history/discovery channel, & is witty/charming. I (Virgo) like fashion (majored in apparel design), watching hgtv/turner classics, and am cool & collected. Our common interests are cooking, traveling, love of new experiences & laughter. He helps me see the lighter side of life, & I in turn help him focus on the whole picture. For one another, we are a good balance.
Early twenties
The first letter received was in celebration of my birthday (we’d been dating for 3 months). Though he is very articulate, I was surprised at his sweet declarations and heartfelt emotion. I decided henceforth, I would keep every letter or note that he gave me.
A couple months later for our first Valentines, instead of buying “stuff”, we decided to make it memorable with a DIY surprise. With his dad’s help, he created a handmade box, with a heart on the opened lid, for me to keep his letters in.
Over the next four years, we would write one another, and his letters to me did not cease, even when he was living in Spain for a summer, or traveling England the next.
The letters exchanged over the past 11 years are a documented special part of my life, and one of the things that made me fall in love with him. Together we have experienced life & loss, with laughter & tears, good times and dark days, but always embracing the change that comes from this life’s journey, with one another.
mrs. and the misc. 
What a sweet post!
Thanks sweet lady!
Great post! What a wonderful way to look back on your relationship, as well as your lives in general!
Kenley
Thanks:) One of these days I will have to go back and read the letters in chronological order! That’ll be a whole day for sure:)
What a lovely post! You are so right, there really is nothing like a handwritten letter. Thank you so much for being a part of this month’s Collectively Creative.
Thanks Kelly! Glad Mrs.& the Misc. was invited! We enjoy everyone else’s posts too:)
This is adorable. As is your blog!
Thanks Erika!
I still have all the love notes michael sent me from summer camp when he was a counselor. he def. stopped since then, but they are great reminders of the first two years we were together and were falling in love. Seems SO long ago … 10 years in June. I’m glad you and Tommy keep the letter writing alive. It’s very special and romantic. Happy Vday!
I know, 10 years does seem like such a while ago! That falling in love period have some of my best memories/best feelings:) I’m so happy we both ended up with our “sort of” highschool/college sweethearts!
It’s kind of crazy, but I love that we did too.
Omg, I LOVE your story! Thank you for sharing it with us. 🙂 Those letters are the sweetest thing and I’m sure much more meaningful to you than any material possession. I love the box too!
P.S. Your wedding dress is gorgeous!
Thanks Leah! I’m totally going to copy your idea from today’s post! Seriously!:) I love my “keepsake” box, its one of the sweetest things he ever gave me.
Awesome – I hope you share with us how your date cards turn out. I’m also always looking for new date ideas – I’m sure you’ll inspire me. 🙂
how sweet and touching! love the wooden box, it’s soo sentimental 😉 and your wedding pic is just plain gorgeous!
Thanks! It was a lovely surprise and I will always cherish it. Although we are from TX, I wanted to get married somewhere that my family had vacationed when I was younger. The location is Ouray, CO!
That is incredibly sweet. I love the box he made you, it is so precious.
Thanks! Now if I could only get him to make me a bigger one!
Such a sweet post! I love love that you have handwritten letters and that gorgeous box to keep them in. What a romantic gift!
Also — I love your wedding dress and picture. Gorgeous!
Thank you:) I know, I loved that he had created/made the box AND it had a sweet purpose!
Oh come on, you’re killing me. Now this is super sweet and I wish I had that type of long history with my husband but I didn’t meet him til I was 25. I’ve always wished I could have met him earlier in my life. What a lovely story you guys share!
Thanks Alex! One good thing is that you met HIM and married him. Some people meet their soulmate much later in life, or realize too late, that they lost that one person who really “clicked” with them.
This is a beautiful story, and one that resonates with me a lot! My husband and I dated long distance for over a year before we got married, and I have dozens, maybe hundreds, of letters that we wrote to each other back and forth during that season. I’m so glad that we got to know each other through letters than just texts and emails and skype…there’s something to be said for pouring thought and preparation into our words, and in our electronic age, love letter writing is a dying art. I’m glad to know that it’s alive and well in your world!
So fun to be a part of Collectively Creative with you this month. Cheers!
Thank you for sharing with me. I love hearing about the “courting” process as everyone’s is so unique. When I was still in school, I would check my mailbox everyday, literally! And when I received one…I would wait till I got back to my dorm room/after classes to open my note, so that I could really focus on what had been written esp. for me!
I do believe hand written letters are making a come back. What a lovely post.
They for sure are. I think it has something to do with pinterest and etsy affecting the generation/DIY, and trying to be more crafty. I LOVE a handwritten letter!
I’m glad I visited this site. Cool young ladies in here! => Happy Hearts Day in advance!
Thank you & to you as well! I enjoyed your post today 🙂
Thank you for sharing such a beautiful aspect of your marriage! It reminded me of many sweet gestures in the beginning of mine that sort of fell through the memory cracks. Keeping something like this around you constantly will always give you a reminder of the “better” in the worst times, and that treasure box will be so sacred in your golden years!
🙂 Glad you appreciated! Sometimes we just need a little reminder of a “good time” to get us into positive thinking for a negative moment. It definitely helps to go through the box, when you are feeling “unforgiving”…because you realize that marriage really is “for better or for worse”
Ah…you are blessed – not only in your love, but the way you appreciate the small things. The personal things. Virgos are like that. I know. May the glow last forever.
Thanks Amos! I am human so I forget some days how special I have it, but I do have the ability to appreciate the moments, or past moments when they arise! Thank you for your kind words.
Hi Susanna! Thanks for sharing this gorgeous snapshot of your relationship with us. Your man reminds me a little bit of my husband… for the first couple of years that we were together, he’d leave little love notes on scraps of paper, discarded lunch bags or post-it notes, sometimes sneaking them into my handbag or wallet when I wasn’t looking. I’ve saved each and every one… I’ve even kept a couple in my wallet to look at when I’m having a bad day. Unfortunately, now we’ve been married a while, he doesn’t seem to feel the need to be ‘romantic’ anymore!! We’re definitely still inseparable and I don’t at all doubt that he feels the same way, but I miss the handwritten notes. It’s a totally different form of communication to just saying words outright 🙂 Oh, and after we’d been together a year, he made me this wooden kitchen stand which he’d hand-varnished… written on the side was ‘I love you always’. Woodshop boys unite! SO sweet. Anyway, thanks again for this gorgeous post. I’ll be following this blog from now on 🙂 x
Something I might suggest is: start writing him a few notes. It might remind him of how much you loved them when you received them and perhaps will lead into a perfect moment for you to let him know how much you really appreciated his sweet gestures. 🙂
Thank you for sharing! I love a good love story! My husband & I also exchange letters, mostly it began because of his deployments with the Marine Corps. But I can really appreciate how you cherish your letters, as I do too. 🙂
Thank you Christina, for commenting. I like when I receive feedback and also a little insight into readers own experiences. You of course know how special the letters are! So happy you both appreciate how precious letters are to one another:)
ciao! luvFAB blog.
thebestdressup
Glad you enjoyed!
I love the idea of having a special box to keep these precious memories in. What a great way to look back on your life together. Thank you!
Me too! It was such a sweet thought out present, and I truly appreciate it:)
Great story. Your wedding dress was gorgeous!