On one of our frequent walks where we talk about everything and nothing, my husband and I discovered a new way to save money and still give thoughtful gifts.
“Isn’t today the day you were saved, about thirty-nine years ago?” I asked.
Knowing how prone I am to shenanigans, Kevin answered with caution. “Yessss… why do you ask?”
“Well, I meant to buy you a gift, but since it’s a week ‘til payday, I ate a cookie in your honor instead.”
He rolled his eyes. “Thanks a lot. That means the world to me.”
“I thought it would. Hey, we could do this for all our gift giving from now on. We send a card or email saying, “Happy Birthday. We ate a porterhouse steak in your honor,” or “Congratulations on your new baby; we bought some roses to celebrate. “
I picked up my stride as I warmed to this brilliant idea. “When our nephew Tim graduates, we can go on that cruise I’ve always longed for; we can bake a cake and eat it when my friend Terri gets a job; and we can buy a Get Well Soon balloon whenever someone we know is in the hospital. Balloons cheer me up, don’t they you, Kev?”
If he’d folded his answer in half he couldn’t have fit it in, I was yakking so fast. “We’ll start a whole new tradition of honoring people on their special day, and save money at the same time!”
He shook his head and grinned. “I’m sure it’ll go over real big, Honey. I’m just glad the Lord didn’t use that method when we needed the gift of salvation. He sent us the real thing, wrapped in baby skin. Now that was a true In Honor gift.”
Today is our Monthiversary. Since giving presents is one of my major love languages, I'll make up any excuse to give a gift. We started this tradition when we were newlyweds 36 years and seven months ago, with only a short break when our kids were young and we had to eek every bit of mileage from our dollars. 
This month I am giving Kev a bag of Cheetos. A few days ago, he mentioned that he likes the crunchy kind better than the puffy ones. When I hear those little tidbits, I tuck them away in my brain for future gift-giving moments. 
