A mom of two is the envy of social media after sharing the detailed schedule and menu her husband put together for their epic Lord of the Rings movie marathon.
Abbey Smith told Newsweek she had “never really got into” Lord of the Rings prior to sitting down to watch all 11 hours and 22 minutes of the extended edition of Peter Jackson’s film trilogy.
“My husband, Aaron, is a huge fan of fantasy books and movies so I’ve always known he loved Lord of the Rings but it just was never my jam,” she said. “He would ask sometimes but didn’t push too hard because I don’t think it’s the kind of thing you want to tackle with someone who’s not entirely on board.”
Eventually Abbey agreed to take a trip to Middle Earth with Aaron, but he took careful steps to ensure she would enjoy their own special “Hobbit Day” – an occasion celebrated by fans worldwide on September 22.
This one was a little different though, with Abbey’s husband putting together a detailed schedule breaking down the timings for each of the movies and the culinary treats he had planned along the way.
Abbey was impressed. So impressed, in fact, she decided to share the schedule to Twitter, where the itinerary generated a similar response. “Your husband is definitely a keeper,” one person wrote, with another describing it as “perfection.” A third, meanwhile, asked: “Can I marry him?”
Abbey said she shared the schedule to show some appreciation to Lord of the Rings fans and her husband for pulling out all the stops to make it a truly special day.
“Even though I was watching the movies for him, the day itself was for me,” she said. We have two kids and we’ve both lost a parent in the last year and experienced some intense life changes and we’re living on a budget and we’re trying to find fun date things to do at home.”
She added: “My husband planned every moment out and took care of all the food and also cleaned up and honestly that’s significant and I knew it would be and I just wanted to brag a little about it.”
When Lord of the Rings pops up on social media these days it’s usually in the form of a meme. But Abbey and Aaron’s story is different.
Different Interests
It’s a small reminder that sometimes having different interests can be a healthy component of a romantic relationship. As relationship psychotherapist Charisse Cooke previously explained to Refinery29: “People often confuse compatibility with being the same.”
“It’s often the differences in relationships that can cause problems and conflict. So we may imagine someone having the same interests as us protects us from misunderstandings or disagreements,” she told the news provider.
Cooke warned that dating someone with the same interests has its own problems. “There’s less room for growth,” she said. “You may find that you stop trying new things.”
It may have only been a small thing, but in indulging Aaron’s love of Lord of the Rings, Abbey opened herself up to a new experience – one that their kids, aged 9 and 11, ended up joining in with.
“My personal highlight was probably Legolas and Gimli’s relationship,” she said. “I honestly had no idea how funny Lord of the Rings was but it’s genuinely so funny! And especially their little bickering but loving friendship made me laugh a lot so that was fun.”
She especially loved watching it with her husband. “He has the books memorized so would pause and tell me how the film was different. It was like having my own personal tour guide through Middle Earth.”
Abbey said she “hit the wall” after the second movie, The Two Towers, due to a combination of “so much food” and the fact “there’s a lot to keep track of.” Fortunately they were ahead of schedule by that point so they were able to take a break and do some jumping jacks and yoga stretches.
Of all the food served up, Abbey ranked the poutine as a particular highlight, and she’s already planning a return to Middle Earth, albeit in a slightly different guise.
“A friend of ours texted me after I tweeted this and said that he loves these movies and if we want to do another day for the Hobbit movies he and his wife are in, so we’re starting to make a menu plan for that.”
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