Eighteen (18!) years ago on February 14th, Tony and I went on our first date. Yes, our Other Anniversary just happens to fall on Valentine’s Day. We were in our second year of university, and we had been friends for a while but had both been previously dating other people. In a series of coincidences, on February 14th 1992, we both realized that the other was no longer dating their previous person. We met up that night at a University of Ottawa Science Students’ Association party (geeky, I know) and we never looked back.

Monday is Family Day in Ontario, a provincial stat holiday that I, as a government peon, and Tony, as a self-employed guy, don’t get off, and we also have no daycare for our girls that day. We asked grandparents if they would be able to have the girls for a sleepover Sunday evening, and take care of the girls for us on Monday. Sure, they replied, but do you realize that’s Valentine’s Day? Um, no actually.

Wow, so now what will we do? We have no kids on Valentines Day and it’s our Other Anniversary too. We are so out of practice at celebrating these things, I’m guessing we will have a usual busy Sunday and then get our usual take-out from our favourite Thai restaurant. And I don’t think this is lame at all. We have eighteen years together, our home, work, the most amazing children, and a family life that we built together. Living this life every day is the true celebration that commemorates that first date so long ago.

Happy Other Anniversary Tony.