Today marks the twenty-first anniversary of the first date I had with my husband.
I think I’m in shock.
We will have been married 20 years in June.
It’s unbelievable how fast time seems to have gone by, and yet I can remember hundreds of events over the years that mark the passage of time.
We’re big into celebrating milestones. And this one seems significant. Neither of us remembers the date of our first kiss (though we do remember the kiss). We don’t remember the date of when we first said “I love you.” I honestly can’t remember who said it first.
As a romance writer, I love these moments in stories. I think that being a writer has caused me to take extra time to enjoy the moment. I’ve learned to savor the romance of a happy anniversary.
Being a writer has also made me curious about anniversaries in CCR. In many romance books, the story ends when the characters fall in love. There are a few who do family sagas and we get to see those anniversaries play out on the page, but they’re few and far between.
I’m curious to know what kind of anniversaries you like to see in contemporary Christian romance.
What anniversaries do you keep track of in real life?
Tabitha Bouldin has a bachelor's degree in creative writing/English from Southern New Hampshire University. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) and has been writing since 2015. When she's not homeschooling her kids, you'll find her curled up with a book. Tabitha's genre of choice is Contemporary Christian Romance which she describes as: Adventure with heart.
The anniversaries of my parents death always comes to my mind. I miss them.
My paternal grandfather his death always comes to mind.
Hi Tabitha! Thought provoking blog this gloomy cold Michigan morning. Anniversaries – mmm! As a retiree, I prefer to remember my parent’s birthdays, not the day they past. Also when I celebrate my June wedding anniversary, I remember my maternal grandmother, who also married on the same day – 54 years earlier (1919). Don’t really remember the day of the first kiss or date or even when hubby and I got engaged.
In the past – my parent’s generation, corporations acknowledged company loyalty at the anniversary date the person was employed. My father was a watchman for Voice of Music (the company made school record players) and every year on his anniversary date he received a card and a dish. Special recognition at five year and ten year employment, not just at retirement. Today’s CEOs have forgotten this. As a retired teacher, I do remember the fall I started my various teaching jobs. Most teachers do.
Another anniversary is the purchase of our home. Every Valentine’s Day we remember the day we moved into the home we are living in. Also remember the anniversary when I purchased my car. Best wishes. Enjoy your weekend and happy writing.
Happy “first date-a-versary,” Tabitha! My husband and I like to remember ours, too! (We’re coming up on #19!)
I can remember dates of death and dates of birth, and in my family, quite a few of those overlap. I also know the date my parents married, as I was born the day after their anniversary.
On March 24 was 2 years since my grandma passed away suddenly.My mom and dad have been married almost for 28 years.It will be two years in May since my brother got a major surgery.i remember birthdays and deaths.
To my mind, The most important anniversary is a wedding anniversary. Whether it’s one year or fifty, it’s worth celebrating the love and commitment that has kept the couple together
I’m so sorry for your loss. Would you mind sharing one of your favorite memories of them?
I’m so sorry for your loss. Would you mind sharing something about him?
I remember wedding anniversaries the most yet I do remember anniversaries of most of my grandparents, my husband’s and my Momma’s passing. The reasons I remember the death dates are because of the correlation to other things. Most of these are all one to two years apart at such close dates they are difficult not to think about, especially my Momma’s. Hers was just 4 days after I ended up in a nursing home so the way I had to attend her visitation and funeral with special wheelchair accessible transportation and a personal medical attendant as well as it being the day before my daughter’s birthday all make that totally impossible not to remember.
In a book I think it is special to have a man remember the anniversaries of all of the ‘firsts’ and plan a small private way to remember this for his lady. With this being something most men as a whole do not remember I think it is more attractive to a female reader as we are drawn to these emotional moments. If the book has a woman who is newly widowed or a couple losing a child I think it is natural for them to remember these dates. Personally, when a couple with other children have lost a child I think it is nice for them to have a small, low key family birthday “memorablation”, a celebration of memories of the child who is gone. Making the person’s favorite meal followed by a home movie of the entire family’s special times. Possibly a cake and ice cream. At some point in the evening I like the idea of having a time where they take an item which was special to the child or even something like a decorative stone and pass it around to each person. When each person holds that item they share a special memory or something they loved about the person. The entire time is a great way to remember the person with good, happy memories to help each other heal, thinking more of the positivity that person brought to the family, a small step to begin to diminish the grief.
Those are some excellent anniversaries. The company I used to work for would mention those who had reached five and ten year milestones. I always thought it was a nice gesture. I wish more would do this.
Woohoo! Isn’t it wild how the years go by? We’re trying to decide how to celebrate today. So far we have zero ideas other than dinner 🤣, which is what we did for our first date.
I always struggle to remember my parents’ anniversary. Not sure why. That’s an excellent way to keep track!
Those seem to be some that stick with us the most.
That is absolutely true!
That is an excellent suggestion for the hero to remember. I love your insight.
Even though you’re right and it’s not as common to see them in fiction, I like wedding anniversaries and love remembering my parents’ and grandparents’.
We keep track of the anniversary of our first date, St. Patrick’s Day. We also keep track of our wedding anniversary. Another date we keep track of is our birthday. Yes, you read that correctly. My husband and I share a birthday. Thank you so much for sharing. God bless you.
wedding anniversaries
Congrats on the (almost) 20th anniversary!! I totally, 100% agree with you when you say “It’s unbelievable how fast time seems to have gone by, and yet I can remember hundreds of events over the years that mark the passage of time”. Wow, you pinpointed my sentiments exactly! :-)
My husband was the one who said “I love you” first & I was the one to initiate the first kiss. In fact, I surprised (shocked?) myself when I leaned over to give him a quick peck on what was suppose to be his cheek, but at the last minute I decided to kiss him on the lips…lol :-D Then I asked him if I really did that…HAHA!! And here were are 25 years later still stealing kisses whenever we can & saying “I love you” at least 100 times each day.
Milestones: on our 20th anniversary we celebrated it by renewing our vows in the church we attend. What a wonderful day! Everyone pitched in to make it so special; from a homemade cake to decorating the fellowship hall. And of course, there was lots of memories shared by us & laughter galore.
I love seeing couples celebrate anniversaries in a story. Whether it be wedding or maybe a dating one (6 months, a year, etc). Celebrating the birth of a baby or children’s birthdays are also special in a story. I think any reason to celebrate a special day can be included in a book :-)
I remember mum and dads wedding anniversary 5th April 1947. And birthdays and when they died.
I got my cats on the 21 – 2 2019 so I remember their Gotcha day each year (ok only 3 so far)
July 4 is when Meggs (former cat) took his independence he use to wander but this time never came back.
July 2 1997 is the last time I had a drink of coke. I remember it well My football team was thrashed by a team I don’t like and I went to buy a bottle of coke the next day and got stirred losing so didn’t buy the bottle and haven’t had one since.
I keep track of my Dating Together Anniversary with my Husband. Also, our Wedding Anniversary. I keep my parents & grandparents on my Mom’s side Anniversary. My parents are only 2 days after ours but 2 years older then me. My grandparents are on my Poppa’s birthday just like my Godparents are on my Nanny’s birthday.
I only remember my Wedding Anniversary & Anniversary Together Dating which is 5 years apart but on the same date on different months.
Wow, congratulations on your special anniversary! I don’t remember the exact date of my husband and my first date, nor the date when he proposed, although I know the months. We only mark our wedding anniversary. I remember the date of my mother’s death, down to the day of the week and time of day when I heard the news.