A wedding anniversary is the celebration of love, trust, partnership, tolerance and tenacity. The order varies for any given year. ~Paul Sweeney
We celebrated our anniversary today by going to church and then to a fast food restaurant for some burgers and ice cream. Big time celebrators, right? But we had just come from from St. Louis where I got to have fun mixing with other writers and readers at the JustRead Rendezvous and Darrell got to see an old friend. Then, of course, we had some meals out together and a lot of hours in the car traveling to and from the reader retreat.
We celebrated our 50th back in 2014 which seems like just yesterday. Now, I’m having trouble getting around the idea that today we are celebrating 59 years. Both my parents and my husband’s parents lacked a couple of years celebrating 50 years together. One of my sisters did see her 50th but at the time her husband was fighting lung cancer, a fight he lost, and so they didn’t feel like celebrating. My other sister lost her husband before they were married 50 years.
So those milestones aren’t that easy to reach, but it helps when you start as young as we did. Way too young! The picture is from the first year we were dating. But things worked out and here we are all these many years later, still married. Still smiling, most of the time, the way we’re smiling in this old picture. This is the first picture we ever took together. We were at an amusement park with a church group and ducked into one of those little photo booths where you put in a quarter (I told you it was a long time ago) and got a strip of four pictures. One of my sweet readers actually touched up this picture and fixed Darrell’s chin. I have it somewhere but of course, couldn’t find it tonight. But maybe it’s more fun to see the original that my husband carried around in his wallet for years.
A long marriage is two people trying to dance a duet and two solos at the same time. ~Anne Taylor Fleming
We’ve been married a long time now. But we’re still walking down life’s road together while pursuing our own dreams too. Enjoying the blessings. Facing the hard times. Finding our way through life. Being thankful for the gift of a beautiful family.
Chains do not hold a marriage together. It is threads, hundreds of tiny threads which sew people together through the years. ~Simone Signoret
That’s how life goes. Many threads of life connecting us. It’s the same with a book when I’m writing. I have to come up with those threads of life to make my story and people come to life. Of course I have to give my characters plenty of hard times because while happily ever after might make a good ending, happy times the whole book through won’t keep readers turning pages. We like it when the fictional characters in the books we read dream big, overcome problems, and reach their goals. You know what? We want the same for ourselves and our friends and family.
Hope the threads connecting you with your loved ones this year and every year are threads of happiness.
I’m sure many of you out there have celebrated milestone anniversaries. Ten years. Twenty-five. Forty. Fifty. I knew a couple in our church who celebrated 75 years together.
Have you ever had a big celebration for an anniversary?
Comments 28
My beloved Dale & I recently celebrated 55 yrs, can hardly believe it! Our children helped us celebrate 5 yrs ago with 50 guests and a lovely dinner. We now have 9 grandchildren and 2 great grands with another on the way. GOD has been so kind to us in spite of many ups & downs physically, healthwise, for both of us. PRAISE HIM from whom all blessings flow!! GOD BLESS YOU & YOUR FAMILY!
Author
Yes, indeed. Praise the Lord and be thankful for the years we’ve been given, Elisabeth. And those precious grandchildren. We have 9 grandchildren too, but no great grands as yet.
I hope the two of you have more years to enjoy together. Thank you for your sweet words and thoughts.
We haven’t quite reached that 25th anniversary yet but are getting close. The years do fly by! Happy Anniversary to you both and prayers that the Lord blesses you with many more happy years! I had grandparents and great-grandparents that were blessed with the 50 and 60 year marks and it really is a blessing.
Author
You’re still practically a newly wed compared to me, Hope. 🙂 But the years do fly by and add up. And who knows? My husband and I might add on some more. Thanks for your sweet wishes.
Happy 59th Anniversary,, A lot of memories in those years. My husband and I were married 59 years and 4 months when he died. We had a lot of good times and some not so good, but no regrets. Wishing you many more years together, Gods Blessings.
Author
You’re right, Donna. You do accumulate a lot of memories in your years together. Of course, we do remember some of them differently. LOL. We got married very young, but like you, we have no regrets.
Thank you for the sweet wishes.
A very Happy Anniversary to you both. That’s a great amount of years to have been together. We will be celebrating our 52nd next month. We’ve never had a big celebration, just mostly go out to eat at one of our regular places.
Author
We did have the big blow-out thrown and organized by the kids for our 50th, but usually we’re like you, Connie, and might go out to eat or see a movie. And Covid sort of got us out of the habit of the movie going. But sometimes it’s good just to spend time at home together or with the family.
Our children gifted us with our first cruise for our 25th anniversary, and our 40th was during COVID so we were in quarantine. Ann, wishing you and your husband congratulations and blessings for many more wonderful years of married life!
Author
Sounds as if you have some great kids, Margaret. I hope you enjoyed the cruise. My husband and I talk about taking an anniversary trip, but then we never get it planned. You could always take a delayed 40th celebration trip. Everything was delayed there for a while.
Happy Anniversary to the both of you! My parents celebrated their 58th wedding anniversary this year in September.
Author
That’s lovely, Diana. Isn’t it the greatest to be able to celebrate their marriage with them for so many years?
My husband and I are celebrating 50 years this December 29! We’re having a party on Saturday, Dec 30, for family & friends who can come. It’s hard to believe it’s been that many years!
Author
I hope you have a wonderful celebration, Margaret. I enjoyed the party the kids threw for us on our 50th. Lots of picture taking and talking and laughing. But I know what you mean by how hard it is to think about the years that have piled up.
I remember Dad and Mom celebrating their 25th anniversary. At that time I thought Jesus would be back before our 25th I knew I didn’t want to get that old! Lol. And here we are just celebrating our 49th anniversary! We did have a 25th anniversary celebration also. Lol
Author
That’s funny, Shari, but I know what you mean. Our perspective on age changes as we add on the years. Looks like you’re almost to the golden one. You’ll have to do some big celebrating then.
Tim and I are going on 38 years on December 28th.I I remember our 25th .we had dinner with all of the family and cake and we went on a trip .It was so nice.My mom planned it all
Author
What a great gift from your mother, Lynne. I know you enjoyed the celebration and the trip. I hope you have a beautiful anniversary this year too.
Happy Anniversary to you both with many blessings.
Author
Thanks, Birdie. Always great to hear from you here.
Congratulations on your 59th anniversary. I don’t know how old you were when you married, because you don’t look over 59. Remarkable!!! We celebrated our 40th anniversary last year with a large, beautiful, party hosted by one of our sons & my niece. We are fortunate to have made it that long. I was 59 and my husband is 82. He has many health problems. I thank God, for every day that he is blessing us with our time together. We have several movies we watch together every night, so every night is date night.
Author
Every night date night. How wonderful, Katherine. So glad you got to have a great party for your 40th.
I tell everybody I was five when I got married, but now that still puts me pretty old. Actually I was very young. I had two kids by the time I was 19. So, probably too young, but it worked out. My kids turned out great. My husband is a great guy and we hope to celebrate more years together.
Oh, and thanks for the compliment.
My Mom and Daddy were married 72 years in 2015 and we celebrated big. I’m so glad we did because we lost Daddy the next year in May and then Mom in 2017. They looked so good the day of their anniversary so it was very unexpected that we would lose them that soon. But God was so good to let us have them for so many years.
Author
None of us know how many more years we might have, Linda. So, it’s good to live the years to the fullest and to make sure we keep those family ties intact. I’m glad you were able to have your parents with you so long, but I know you miss them still.
We have been married for 53 years. We had planned to celebrate our 50th in Hawaii but due to Covid, that was not possible. Fast forward to 2022….our daughters and 2 of the grands went with us to Hawaii. Little did we know that they had secretly planned for us to repeat our vows in a private ceremony at a luau. It was beautiful and worth waiting the extra 2 years. Happy Anniversary !!
Author
That trip with your daughters and grands had to make the celebration that much better, Judi. The repeating of your vows sounds like a highlight. I don’t think my husband would ever do that. Maybe go to Hawaii but not repeat the vows. He said he meant them the first time. 🙂 And I guess he did since here we are still together.
My parents were married 72 years and we celebrated them at all the major milestones. Happy Anniversary blessings to you.
Author
It’s amazing how fast the years fly by, Lucy. I’m sure your parents felt the same, but how wonderful that your family celebrated with them at every opportunity.