Do you cherish a sweet love note? Mmmmm. I do! In every way!
I actually just this morning came across a note written by my daughter from a couple years ago. Reading it again, filled my heart with joy! A kind and sincere note can buoy a person in amazing ways. These little love notes may be some of the sweetest aspects that life has to offer.
Think of a kind note from a friend, or a simple sentence painstakingly written by a 5 year old! Such Sweetness! The struggle with these treasures is how to keep them organized. We have often held onto various post its, papers, and note cards, until it appears more like clutter than love! Then the next move comes along or big spring cleaning and they invariably get tossed into the recycling bin.
Not too long ago, I helped overhauled my parents home after a funeral for my father and I was overcome with the hundreds of stacks of random things to which we cling. I wanted to return to my own home and trash 1/2 of everything just to simplify. I often get stuck on photos and love notes. They seem to carry our memories and it would be tragic to lose them. So here is a simple and doable idea for sharing love in a sweet way that won’t be lost!
10 years ago, I bought a leather bound journal for my husband and then wrote a love note in it for him. I told him that this love note was for “keeps!” Then I wrote in that journal for every birthday, anniversary, Valentine’s Day and lots of “just-because-days” for the next 10 years. That book is full of sweetness all in one place. I also have a journal that my hubby writes in for me. (He gave me one a year later) These books are sweet evidence of our love and lives together. They truly are like love journals showing the passage of time and our love through it all.
Now this is one of our favorite wedding gifts to give. Two blank journals with love note instructions. It’s an amazing way to start a life together. We were years into our journey, before we started this tradition. Who knows what happened to the love notes before then. (We find a few random ones here and there!)
Having multiple love notes all in one place is a powerful pick me up. It’s a great way to say “I’m sorry.” It’s the perfect way to say “I love you just because” and also a wonderful manner to say “I’m proud of you and how you handled that hardship.” You probably don’t need me to teach you how to write a love note….(there is a delicious chapter in Edenbrooke, in which instruction on how to write a love note is clearly outlined. That is a fun & frivolous book to read sometime when you have a few minutes.)
This is a great tradition to start for Valentine’s Day, a birthday or just because. It’s definitely a softening agent and so tremendous for morale!
There are lots of directions you could go with this sweet token of kindness. One year for Father’s day, I had all my kiddos write a love note to their dad, they turned out so darling, I glued them into his love note journal, because I didn’t want them to be lost. 90 percent of the pages are just paper with love notes written with various pens over the years, but some of the pages have post its or a note card attached. But the dream, is they are all in one place.
I can almost always count on some sweetness from my hubby for the celebration days (Valentine’s, Mother’s Day, Birthday and etc.), but some of my favorite notes come from the in between days.
Other ideas: I think you could start a love note journal for your individual kiddos. This would be fun! Keep the journal in their room in a place where you can have access to jot a little love any time! It could be used to congratulate on a Theater Audition, or being brave during a thunder storm or whatever your heart desires. We all receive PLENTY of correction and criticisms, it’s just a part of life. A love note journal can act as a hard times antidote! Filling a journal with sweet thoughts and admiration would be a memorable treat for your children.
This has been a treasure in my home, I hope it can be a boost for you as well.
I’ve collected mother’s day cards and such for years. What a good idea!
Your hubby would love it Kristy! 🙂
So sweet! I did something similar way back when but haven’t done it for years. Maybe I’ll pull out the book and get writing again!
Right! It is tricky to keep up on everything. (read: impossible!) But I bet your love note now would go a long way!