Our Anniversary Gifts

 I have to tell you all about our anniversary gifts for this year! No, our anniversary hasn't rolled around yet, but we exchanged gifts early. I was SO EXCITED about Ryan's that I just couldn't wait to give it to him!

Typically, Ryan and I do the traditional anniversary themes for our gifts, and I believe the theme for ten years is a tin gift, but we both deviated this year. (Rebels.) The gift I wanted to give him this year represents the memories we've made over a decade together and shows the room ahead for many memories to come!

I got the idea from our friends Jonathan and Julie, who have one of these in their home. (And I think Natasha may have this also - or something similar.) Julie and I got together a few times for her to teach me all the tips and tricks of assembly, and then it was time for the big reveal to Ryan. I'll show you the pictures and then explain the gift.

I just LOVE IT!

This is a map from Thunder Bunny Labs. They make several maps, so if the 50 states aren't your goal, you can also choose from Europe, islands of the Caribbean, seven continents, Canadian provinces, ballparks, National parks, football stadiums, hockey arenas, basketball arenas, and individual states.

Their website allows you to add pictures for each state and resize/reorient the pictures to fill in the shape of the state. When they print, the outline of the state is on the picture, so you can cut it to fit right in the space! 

We have been to 17 states in 10 years. (We have actually been IN four more states than that, but we just drove through, so we don't have anything to show for it.) And amazingly, even though I didn't know I was going to need such a thing, I was able to find pictures that fit each state's shape! 

* Dancing on the beach at our wedding in Florida

* Visiting downtown Atlanta in Georgia

* Kissing in the mountains of Tennessee

* Standing in front of a snow-covered Biltmore estate in North Carolina

* Visiting the beach in Virginia

* Touring a coffee roaster in Maryland

* Hiking Letchworth State Park in New York

* Ice skating in Ohio

* Touring an old mansion in Kentucky

* Attending a Colts game in Indiana

* Kissing on the shores of Lake Michigan in Michigan

* Touring a dairy farm in Wisconsin

* Visiting a zoo in Illinois

* Seeing a Little House site in Missouri

* RVing in Iowa

* Amazed by Little Jerusalem Badlands State Park in Kansas

* Meeting Oxen in Colorado

I am SO EXCITED to see how many more states we can fill in over the next decade together.

Ryan loved the gift and he is already excited about filling in more states. He was also excited to give me the gift he picked out for me. Spoiler alert: it's perfect, and I love it!

For the last decade, he has watched me swoon over every card catalog we've seen in any store. We don't have room in our home for a giant, antique card catalog, but he found me a smaller version that is absolutely perfect in every way. All the little drawers open, and I can use them to store office supplies that look unsightly when out in plain view.

I didn't even know a thing like this existed. It is perfect, and I love it so much! He said he was sorry it didn't have ten drawers, but I suppose that would make for an awkward layout. I love it just the way it is. 

I call this year a smashing success on gifts!!