Our resident catwomanizer, Andrea Gunawan, is back at it this Friday with another installment of SweetLove with Andrea. This time she's here to make our hearts flutter with feelings of warmth and fuzziness. Sweet, sweet, sweet stories about memorable surprises that she compiled from her audience. If that wouldn't inspire you or make you want to plan something special for your special someone, we don't know what will.
Take it away, Andrea!
Hi everyone, Sometimes being with our partner for so long, we start taking them for granted. Rarely do most of us take the time to let them know how much they truly mean to us, and not just by posting a seemingly candid, picture perfect photo, followed by a cheesy caption and a #RelationshipGoals hashtag on Instagram just to gain likes and comments.
Some of us may choose to shower our significant other with lavish gifts and fancy meals once in a while, but we forget that love can’t be bought. And while money may certainly help, even the smallest tokens of love and appreciation can not only make your partner feel great, but also make your relationship even stronger. It’s the surprise factor of that random act of kindness that makes your significant other realize they are loved—and that when it comes to dating you, romance isn't dead.
The key is thoughtfulness. As the saying goes, actions speak louder than words. Chocolate, notes, and roses do, too. Here are the 10 most memorable surprises I managed to compile from my beloved followers:
“I don’t know why, but I’ve always loved Singapore, so that’s where I always go to on my birthday every year. This time my girlfriend surprised me by planning and organizing a quick getaway to Singapore for my 27th birthday. And since I never really succeeded in surprising her, I decided to pop the question the night before we were supposed to fly back. She thought I was just messing with her until she saw the ring. Of course she said yes!”
“I’m an avid gamer. I play Battlefield with my squad almost every day. I once held the #1 infantry kills for Indonesia. The night before my birthday, I was playing as usual, and after I was done, my squad suddenly started singing happy birthday to me. It took me by surprise, because we were all playing anonymously this whole time, so I wondered how they found out about my birthday. Turns out, my girlfriend sneakily told my squad to wish me a happy birthday when I went out for a few minutes to feed the dogs. It was such a nice, unexpected gesture.”
“I was broke and I found an excuse to give my boyfriend the most precious gifts of all: my time and attention. So I gave him a set of coupons which were totally customizable and easy to create. I gave him 22 coupons, such as 1 30 minutes backrub, 1 kiss and make-up, 1 quality time over a dinner date, 1 homemade meal, 1 room cleaning, etc. He absolutely loved it!”
“Before I got married to my husband, we were in a long-distance relationship. He was stationed in another island that would take about 45 mins to reach on a speedboat. A day before Valentine’s Day, he came home and I picked him up. He told me he had a Valentine’s Day present for me and he gave me an envelope. Turns out it was an official letter stating that he would be stationed close to home. 2 months later we got married.”
“Just happened recently. I fell sick and had to be hospitalized. Unbeknownst to me, my boyfriend flew all the way from Jakarta to Melbourne to visit me in the hospital. He went to the hospital straight from the airport, equipped with some movies in his external hard disk drive so we could watch them together. He also ordered some food from the outside because I was bored with bland hospital food. He stayed in Melbourne for a week to be with me, and it really meant the world to me because we are in a long-distance relationship. He didn’t even buy a return ticket until he made sure we had enough quality time together and also with our families. It really made me happy, especially because I didn’t expect this at all. Little did I know, he had planned this with my mom’s help. It turns out that my mom kept him updated by sending him photos of me when I was asleep. So happy to know they get along really well!”
“My boyfriend is the least romantic person on earth. But 4 years ago, on my 1st birthday spent with him, he made me a cake which he baked and frosted himself. He even gave me a bouquet of 21 roses to match my age at that time. I didn’t expect anything from him and the cake wasn’t perfect, but his efforts made him perfect for me.”
“I just moved to a new place which didn’t have a proper air circulation, so it felt really hot in the evening and I had a hard time sleeping because of it. My girlfriend decided it would be a great idea to give me this box of “Good Night’s Sleep Kit”, which consisted of a brand new fan, mosquito repellent spray, condensed milk, and a love letter saying she hoped it would help me sleep better at night. It worked!”
“Last year’s Valentine’s Day, when every other girl got roses, chocolate, and stuffed animals, my boyfriend gave me a house key, saying the house would be mine anyway. We’re married now.”
“I’d gotten a bouquet of flowers delivered to my workplace. I’d gotten breakfast in bed and gifts for women’s day. I’d gotten a giant teddy bear on Valentine’s Day. But the most memorable one was when I walked into my bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen squeaky clean, with a note saying how precious I am to him.”
“I was having my PMS and I was in a really bad mood that I kept pestering my boyfriend in order to get his attention. He responded by ignoring me, and moments later, there’s a delivery guy outside, bringing me my favorite food with a note saying “Stop being so annoying.” Turns out he was busy ordering food for me when he wasn’t responding to my chats.”
“We were in a long-distance relationship before we got married. He lives in Switzerland and I lived in Jakarta. One day, he told me that he was going hiking so he would be out of touch for a while. I didn’t think of anything so I said have fun while I spend some time catching up with my friends at a cafe owned by one of them. I was waiting for my food when my boyfriend came out of the kitchen to bring me my food! I was so surprised that I instantly burst into tears!”
“My boyfriend isn’t big on grand gestures, but he often surprises me with little things, such as arranging autumn leaves on a roadside bench to form a “Happy Anniversary”, or bringing me a rose after he went home from work. But one day, he got home with a smile on his face and his hands behind his back, saying, “Close your eyes! I have a surprise for you!” It turns out he’d brought home a block of tempeh saying it’s hard to find raw tempeh in Germany. Unbelievably unforgettable!”