It’s May! That means that summer is well and truly on it’s way, and for us, it also means that our third wedding anniversary is approaching. Three years ago, on May 11th, I married my best friend, my rock, my soul mate. The person who I love more than anything in the world, and the person who irritates me more than anyone else.
Eight years together. Three years married. Two children born. Two countries lived in, with countless countries holidayed in.
Three years married despite what all the doubters thought all the way back in 2008.
It also means anniversary gift time, and while searching for an anniversary gift guide I stumbled across a guide on wedding anniversary gifts by Eternity Rose. Listing not only the traditional choices, but the modern, and the GEMSTONE. Yes. Gemstone. And for the third wedding anniversary that traditional gemstone just happens to be pearl, and I’d love some pearls.
But really, it’s not about me and my love of handbags. And flowers. And roses. And jewels. Or a combination of all of the above, with the Eternity Roses forever flowers, intricately immortalised through a number of steps before arriving at the finished, preserved rose. But I’m not sure the husband would appreciate the beauty of a perfect rose. And as I said, it’s not really all about me.
Our wedding was a partnership, a meeting of minds, all about the two of us. Which means I need to stop thinking about what I want and start thinking of something meaningful for him indoors.
Wedding Anniversary Gifts for the Husband
For our first wedding anniversary I took the paper theme to heart, thinking outside the box and making him a “where we’ve been” map of the world showing all the countries we had visited since we got married, including the wonderful, spectacular, child free, Maldives where we spent our first wedding anniversary in style as Grandma babysat back home in Dubai.
Traditionally, for your second wedding anniversary the gift should be cotton. I thought about it for a while. I fretted through the end of my pregnancy about what I could get that was meaningful and thoughtful in cotton. I considered shirts, shorts, ties. In the end, I just gave the Husband his second born son 3 weeks early instead.
Which brings us onto our third wedding anniversary and with it anniversary gifts. I’m not able to produce a baby this year to get out of providing a gift, so I am once again back looking at the traditional gift side of things. For a third wedding anniversary the traditional gift is leather, signifying the protection and warmth found in a loving marriage. Leather? I mean, yes, fantastic for shoes and handbags. But leather? Where is the romance in that?
I’ve been racking my brains on ways to romanticise leather in a way that means something to myself and the husband. I’ve headed for my new favourite tool, Pinterest, and searched away, coming up with some wonderful ideas that I just can’t pull off in the next 10 days. Not without spending a fortune on delivery and courier service. Ideas like wonderful leather luggage tags to signify our love of travelling. Or a beautiful map memory journal, leather bound of course. No, I just can’t pull it off in time. Instead, I’m heading to the mall later this week for a last minute, leather purchase.
Probably a wallet.
Still, I suppose that signifies my spending of all his hard earned cash?!
Do you celebrate anniversary’s with traditional gifts?
Oh you’re so thoughtful! We are totally the opposite, we don’t really celebrate our anniversary, although we do try to go out for dinner at around our anniversary week. I hope you manage to find a lovely gift.
Nat.x
hi laura, there is a shop in sunset mall called Jafferjees that has nice leather wallets plus you can get yours and his name imprinted on the inside from this shop for just for a special touch. (that was my 3rd anniv present to the husband – much loved and appreciated)