Happy Valentine’s Day, y’all! Today, we celebrate love and let me just tell you, us gals here at TSR LOVE love!

As I sit here reflecting over all I have to LOVE about my life – my family, my friends, and my faith – I can’t help but think of how my parent’s love helped shape my love for this world and this life. Today, they celebrate 25 years of marriage & I am so thankful that God chose them for me (or vice versa??). It has been such a joy witnessing their love through the years, especially now as we approach my own wedding.

Here’s a list of some of the things my parents taught me – all through their incredible love for each other and for their children. Enjoy!

25 Things My Parent’s & Their Love Have Taught Me

1. Seek God first, always. I’ve attended a small Baptist church in Hartsburg for as long as I can remember. Sundays were spent together worshipping – sometimes that meant between games at softball tourneys but it was always a priority for our family.
2. Never stop devoting time to each other’s interests. Luckily, my parents shared many interests – concerts, church, softball, etc and continue exploring  those interests together. In fact, they concert more than any of their kids these days….
3. Always value other’s opinions. My Dad is strong-willed and a realist, my Mom is optimistic. Together, they showed their children had to value a different view but work together to agree.
4. Love is hard work. There are always going to be disagreements but you must work through them and work to understand each other to get through them!
5. Forgive and forget easily. Especially the silly little things, like who unloaded the dishwasher last or whose turn it was to take the trash out.
6. Always stay positive and look on the bright side. Life is good and they always showed us that we had SO MUCH to be thankful for!
7. Appreciate what you have – the grass is greener where you water it. We were incredibly blessed as a family to have each other.
8. Be quick to help others. No questions asked. My parents were the first to help family & friends in need.
9. Love yourself first so that you can truly love others. Raising three girls, this was a challenge to teach but I know they worked extremely hard to show us how to love ourselves no matter what.
10. Celebrate every holiday together. Growing up, this meant Christmas at a fire station or birthdays at ball park, but nonetheless, my parent’s made sure we celebrated EVERYTHING together as a family.
11. Wealth does not equal money. I learned from a young age that wealth went beyond having the latest and greatest clothing or gadget. My parents sacrificed so much to give us girls anything they could – but through it all, they made sure we knew wealth was found in our relationships together and with others.
12. Laugh as much as you can every day. I don’t think you can mistake either of my parent’s laughs. They are contagious and absolutely light up a room. I also don’t think you can be around either of them for very long without laughing. I am so thankful for their (different) humors!
13. Choose the road less traveled. The values my parents shared were evident in any decision they ever made!  Although not always popular, they were steadfast in their beliefs & choices – truly admirable!
14. Failure is totally okay…but you better pick your head up fast and try harder at the next thing. Maybe it’s because my Dad is leading (mostly) men all day but he and my mom always taught us that we had to pickup and try again whenever we failed. For me, this usually meant a really long pitch set
15. Keep your word. Promises were always kept in the Bowden household.
16. Never settle for mediocre. It’s okay to be comfortable, but my parents would always remind us to keep working toward a goal or a plan. Ultimately, they pushed me for my Master’s degree, opening Wild Rose, and now The Southern Rose. I am so thankful for the drive they instilled in me!
17. Don’t be afraid to show love. To anyone you know or meet, even strangers.
18. Don’t be afraid to show gratitude. To anyone you know or meet, even strangers.
19. If you want something, go and get it. I was never afraid of chasing my dreams since I knew I always had them for advice and motivation along the way.
20. Never lose your sense of adventure. There’s so much to see in this beautiful world!
21. Love is fun. It should always be fun! My parents have always had fun together, which created many fun memories for us.
22. Little surprises are an easy way of showing your love for each other! Concert tickets, candy, clean cars…. whatever just to make someone you love smile.
23. Be open to change. It’s so easy to resist change or want to resist change, but that isn’t how we grow. My parents have showed us time and time again that change is an OKAY thing and it’s part of life.
24. Love deeply. Life is hard and so is love, but my parents love everyone they know deeply – us girls, our family, and their friends!
25. Look in the same direction. Mom & Dad, if you’re reading this, I hope you’re looking in the same direction… the next 25 years!

I love you so much! Happy Anniversary!!!

P.S. YES, THAT IS MONOGRAMMED EYEBLACK!