Spilling the beans

So I told you that I would share our holiday happenings with you all. I know it is already February and this is waaay overdue. I am so sorry it has taken so long. But I have come to accept that blogging is somewhat of a luxury for me....unless I want the house to be a wreck and the kids to be hungry! (Of course I don't!) But, let's get on with this blog, shall we?
First, our holidays always begin on December 21st. Why that day? What an odd day, huh? Well, that is our anniversary! Casey and I have been married for two years now. He and I actually exchanged gifts this year-something we have never been able to afford before! But I will blog about our anniversary gifts next time. I must first divert from that story to give you a bit of background info so you will understand just how special this years anniversary and Christmas gifts to each other really are.
As a little boy, Casey remembers watching his dad shave with an old-timey razor. And recently, he has been wanting to learn how to shave with a traditional double edge razor. Yes, I know its "traditional", and that word just doesn't fit with Casey's personality, but sometimes sentiment excuses such out-of-the-ordinary behavior. This year, for the first time since we have been together, Casey and I could afford to exchange Christmas (and anniversary) gifts. I first asked his dad if he still had his double-edged razor from years ago. After several days of looking through their storage boxes, Casey's parents came up empty handed. So, I began looking for a new one. I had no clue about traditional razors. I spent hours upon hours, for days and days researching to find him just the right razor for Christmas. I wanted to get him the $184 one with genuine buffalo horn handle. But alas, we had set a budget for each other and I knew it best if I stayed within its confines......darn, stinking, budget! I settled on a razor that was of good quality, pleasing to the eye, and reviewed by many to be easy for traditional shave beginners.
Now, I have always prided myself on being extremely tight lipped about surprises. But after days and days of visions of razors dancing through my head (Oh wait that's supposed to be "visions of sugarplums")I was caught off guard and said something that totally gave it away! The package arrived and I felt like a little girl filled with excitement. I ran to the door, thanked the delivery man, and took the package into Ryan's room to hide it until I could open it and inspect its contents secretly. Casey was in the living room and knew something was up (darn Saturday delivery!). With a smirky kind-of smile he asked "So what was all that about?" I couldn't contain the wide cheese-grin on my face. I tried (and failed miserably) to act non-challant, "Nothing", I replied. He continued, " That wouldn't be for me would it?" I teased back with a childish, "Maybe it is and maybe it isn't." With that last remark we quietly settled back to our family time, but my head was spinning with thoughts of the razor. Would he like it? Would he be surprised? Would he really use it, I mean he HATES shaving? Would it give him terrible razor burn....his face is so sensitive you know. Would he cut his face and bleed everywhere thus making it a really terrible present?!? OH NO!!!!! I fidgeted nervously. I hadn't even opened the package yet, and it was eating me alive! My thoughts kept flitting from one thought to the next. In the midst of my A.D.D. moment, I remembered that Casey had talked about wanting to find a barber shop that still did the straight blade shaves, and that made me remember that I had seen straight blade razors for sale on the same web sight that I had purchased his razor from....and that's when it happened. Out of the silence in the room came my thought out loud, "Did you know they still make straight..." I stopped abruptly, mid-sentence. I had a shocked and yet guilty look on my face, I could feel it! I blurted out a very fast, "never mind" and looked away, hoping he hadn't heard, or maybe hadn't really understood what had come out of my mouth. I cringed as I heard the snide tone in his voice as he teased, "What was that you were saying?" And when I turned and saw the victorious smile on Casey's face, I knew I had indeed said enough to spill the beans. He continued smiling and while rubbing the 3-day old stubble on his face, said, "Hmmmm, I wonder what is in that box?" ***WHAT A BRAT!!!!*** I went and retrieved the package and he and I opened it together.
I didn't realize how important it was to me to keep it a surprise until Casey already had the razor in his hand. He was so supervised, so excited. You have to understand something, I wear my emotions on my sleeve. When I am surprised or excited I get all giddy, like a little girl. I will have a perma-grin on my face and I get all bouncy, wide-eyed, and giggly. Casey is one of those people who appears to not care. He really does, its just his "excited look" is the same as his "I am bored, can we go now" look. So when he was wide-eyed and couldn't stop smiling after getting his razor.....EARLY, I was so upset and disappointed in myself. How wonderful it would have been to see him excited like that on Christmas day. How special would that have made his Christmas. Now all I had to give him for Christmas was CLOTHES! And even though he asked for them, how exciting are clothes to a grown man? I cried in that moment. I was so, so upset with myself. The one thing that I was so excited to give him, and the anticipation and planning were all wasted on a muddled-brain moment!
Casey wanted to make me feel better so he gave me one of my gifts early. It was a beautiful walnut-colored leather archery glove to use when shooting the vintage recurve bow he gave me earlier in the year. I loved it! It was beautiful and felt so soft. I teased and said "Happy Hanukkah!" and we both laughed.

It did make me feel a little better to get a gift early from him as well. But what made me feel much better, was after putting the kids to bed that night, he and I had a quiet moment together while I watched him shave with his new razor. In that moment, I realized that spilling the beans early only opened up an opportunity to give him some really special things for our upcoming anniversary. Now my excitement and anticipation were back....I couldn't wait to buy his anniversary gift, I knew exactly what to get him, and I knew he would love it! TO BE CONTINUED!