anniversary weekend

September 15, 1984 was a beautiful day for an outdoor wedding.

We were so young...just 22 and 24. And we'd already been together for 2-1/2 years.

In celebration of 35 years of wedded bliss and aggravation, we headed a few hours north to St. Joseph, Michigan.

On the drive up, I saw a converted school bus that at first, freaked me out. Why did it have "Homemade in China" painted on it? And why were curtains in all the windows? I thought it was a cult bus or something. I Googled it and found quite the opposite. This is a family ~ wife, husband and five kids ~ that originally lived in China, and are now on a sabbatical road trip. You can read Christine's blog here: Christine Keegan or follow here on Instagram: Homemade in China. Such a fascinating family!

This was our second time going to St. Joseph; the first being in 2013. St. Joe is a small beach town nestled atop a bluff in southwest Michigan. One of their famous eateries is Silver Beach Pizza, not only known for their amazing pizza, but the building itself is an old train depot. Now being from the Chicago area and unquestionably having the best pizza in the US, we are pizza snobs. So for us to say this place has some of the best pizza we've ever had, is singing mighty high praises.

See how the side of the restaurant has windows that fully open? There's tables inside right by the open windows.

We were lucky enough to snag one of these tables by the open window. Pizza with a view! We decided to be adventurous and try the Harvest pizza and were so glad we did. It was one of the best pizzas we've ever had. The crust was brushed with olive oil and a little bit of brown sugar, then layered with butternut squash, krispy kale and bacon, and topped with mozzarella and gouda cheeses. Confession: we took our leftover pizza back to the hotel with us and put it in the mini fridge. Then we had it for breakfast the next morning. Tim asked later, "You ate that with coffee in the morning?" I told him yes, it was that good. 

After dinner, we walked to Whirlpool Compass Fountain which sprays water 35 feet into the air. How good would that feel to splash around in on a hot summer day?

Or a warm summer night?

We continued our walk down to the beach...

Here's beautiful Lake Michigan with the St. Joseph North Pier Lighthouse in the background. I took off my shoes and let the water splash up over my feet and lower legs...that water is cold!

Continuing on our walk, we checked out some of the beautiful houses along the lake...

The sun was starting to set so we climbed a long flight of stairs (50 of them...I counted as a diversion to my lungs about to burst and my heart beating out of my chest) to get to the top of the pavillion...

and witnessed the beautiful sunset over the lake.

As the sun was setting, the fountain was turned off and Taps was played over a speaker. It was like the whole town went silent while this was happening. Everyone stopped for just that one minute and stood in reverence while this miracle played out before our eyes. I love that something that happens every single day can still take your breath away, no matter how many times you see it.

We woke to perfect weather the next morning, and off we went. (After consuming leftover pizza in bed while watching Food Network. Don't judge.) St. Joe's has a beautiful farmers market on Saturday mornings. All the vendors were so friendly and happy to tell us about their produce. We packed our cooler with green beans, tomatoes, fennel, and a variety of peppers. We also bought canned pickled beets (Brian ate the entire jar in 24 hours) and pickled zucchini slices. We haven't tried those yet ~ the elderly woman who canned these vegetables told us she just made them, so they're better when they've sat for awhile.

When we were done at the farmers market, we walked around the downtown area, checking out all the stores. This store brought back a lot of memories of the five and dime stores we used to go into as kids. Anyone remember the Ben Franklin stores? It even smelled like a Ben Franklin store inside! No photos, but we also found a record store where Brian bought a couple of albums and I enjoyed a wine tasting from a local winery that had a storefront.

Thought this was rather interesting on the side of a building. I can only imagine how many adventurous young people have tried to get up there. Or drunk people.

We found a wonderful place for lunch (Mason Jar Cafe) where everything is homemade and farm-to-table. This vegetable quiche I had was more like a strata ~ and so dang good that I wish I had the recipe so I could recreate it at home. 

In the back of this restaurant, there's a huge artist space where different artists sell their work...

There was even a small used book nook. Of course, I had to check that out. I didn't find anything though.

Last stop before heading home: the beach. This time we climbed through the sand dunes. The sand felt so good and warm underneath our bare feet. Nature's pedicure for calluses! There were so many monarchs flying around the dunes, which I was happy to see. 

We walked down the pier to the lighthouse, but not on this side where all the water was splashing onto the pier. One would be swept right out into the deep water! We walked on the other side where it was safe to walk.

This seagull just sat on the railing and stared at me, even as I got closer to take a photo. Wasn't afraid of me at all. Hello, pretty bird!

On the way back towards the beach, we saw workers setting up an arbor and chairs for a wedding. What a perfect spot for saying, "I do" with the waves in the background, the dunes in the foreground, and the gorgeous blue sky overhead. I teased Brian and told him it was for a surprise for us; that we were renewing our vows. 💔

This is one of the newer houses right by the entrance to the dunes where we parked. At first I thought it was part of a resort. I always wonder with places like this, how much room do people need to live in? Unless you have like 15 kids or multiple families living under this one roof. 

We had a wonderful time in St. Joseph but I was glad to get back to my humble home and my kitties.

Comfy House.

a weekend full of love

This past Friday night, I had the honor of being part of the women's circle at My First Best Friend's beautiful home. We met when we were three years old and lived across the street from each other. We drifted apart during our late teens - mid 30's because our lives took such different turns - but now that we're reconnected, it seems like we were never apart. Funny how life does that.

The women in this group are some of the most kind, loving, compassionate, beautiful, supportive, intelligent, and amazing human beings that I have ever known. As they say, these women are "my tribe". Our dinners are healthy and mostly vegan, centering around bowls of homemade soup, salads, veggies, fresh fruit, dark chocolate for dessert, and wine. We sit around the table for almost two hours, eating, talking, and laughing - though most times, there's some tears, too.

And then Saturday was mine and Brian's 34th wedding anniversary! We chose to spend the day in a quiet, simple way ~ in our favorite town, walking around to visit our usual choice places...the bakery where they make from-scratch breads and pastries (we love their scones!); a vintage shop; the farmer's market; and an independent bookstore. This sign was outside a florist and plant shop. 

For true relaxation, we then headed to our Happy Place on the lakefront (Lake Michigan) where we spread a blanket underneath a huge oak tree and laid in the dappled sunshine for almost two hours, kind of napping on and off. It's hard to believe while our area is having such beautiful weather (mid-80's, low humidity, brilliant sunshine), that the east coast is being hit with a hurricane.

 It felt so good with the filtered sun, the cool lake breeze, and the sound of the waves hitting the rocks in the background, that we didn't want to leave. But we finally got hungry and had over an hour's drive home. We stopped at the little pizza place that we used to frequent when we were dating. Brian told me he used to go to this place when he was a kid - it's been in business 50 years! 

Me and my honey...I hope we are blessed with another 34 years together. 💓

~ There is only one happiness in this life; to love and be loved. ~
(George Sand)

wedding day x 33

Thirty-three years ago yesterday, just one month after I turned 22, I said "I do" to Brian.

We were so young!

Weren't my parents a beautiful couple? Their 56th wedding anniversary would've been today. My dad passed away almost 19 years ago. They only had 37 years together. Not that much longer than Brian and I have been married.

And this is Brian's parents. His mom had cancer and was near the end. She held on for our wedding. I love the way Brian's dad is holding on to her arm so gently and looking at her with love and concern. She passed away just six weeks after our wedding. So Brian's parents only had 26 years together. Now that I'm in my 50's and have been married 33 years, I realize how short time together really is. 

 

We usually go on an overnight trip for our anniversary, but we stayed home this year due to two of our cats being on medication. Yes, Tim could've taken care of the cats, but his schedule is too erratic, so we couldn't rely on him. It was fine though ~ we don't mind staying at home. We always say, "As long as we're together." We did go out to a nice dinner to celebrate. We were going to go out to a movie afterwards, but the one we wanted to see (Brad's Status) wasn't playing in any of the nearby theaters. Because we're such party animals, we instead stopped at some stores on the way home.

We're in the market for a new couch, but haven't done much looking yet. We went into Crate and Barrel to look around and I really liked this couch. It was firm and comfortable, the slipcovers are washable, and it's only 83" long instead of your standard 90". That would give us more room on either side of the couch, which is a plus for us since our living room is small. A 90" couch is a three-seater, but in reality, who sits three people to a couch? This 83" sofa is a two-seater, but is very generous. And still long enough where one could lay down on it to read or take a nap.

I was looking at this photo and realized how wrinkled the material gets. Do I want this ultra-casual look in my living room, or do I want more tailored? Hmm. Decisions, decisions. Well, like I said, we've just started looking, so we have a long way to go.

As long as I get to spend at least another 33 years with this guy, it's all good.

Happy weekend!

anniversary, mri update, and a catastrophy

September 15, 1984 when we were just "kids" in our early 20's, we said "I do" in front of our beloved family and friends. My sister was my maid of honor and one of our good friends ~ the guy who introduced us two and a half years prior ~ was our best man. Thirty-two years of marriage...we've been through just about everything together, both good and bad. Like I was discussing with my aunt this weekend, when you say "for better or for worse" in your vows and you're just starry-eyed kids thinking everything is going to be just perfect because you're in love, you have no idea what the "for worse" part even means. We've had financial troubles, illnesses and surgeries (that'd be moi), problems with kids, and numerous other stuff...and have gone through the deaths of Brian's mother and one of his sisters; my father and grandparents; and worst of all, the death of our oldest son. If we can make it through that, we can make it through anything.

As you know from my September 11th post, we had gone to Shipshewana, IN for a getaway weekend in early celebration of our anniversary. But because our anniversary was the 15th, Brian took the day off and we spent the day in our go-to place: Evanston. What a perfect day to walk around to our favorite shops, grab a bite for lunch, then relax at our favorite beach park. We spread out a blanket in this area and laid down and closed our eyes while listening to the waves in the background. Like Brian said, he could've stayed there all day.

Our view of beautiful Lake Michigan...

A trip to Evanston wouldn't be complete without a stop at Secret Treasures. I found this cool bracelet, just right for fall. And yes, that's my pant leg and foot that is photo-bombing. That's what happens when you take an arm selfie.

Love the pretty button clasp in back.

The only other thing I found at Secret Treasures was a small yellow McCoy planter, which I put on the window shelf in my office.

I had also mentioned in my September 11th post that I was going for a MRI on my knee, as the orthopedic doctor suspected a meniscus tear. Well, it was confirmed. And the news I got was worse than I expected: I need arthroscopic surgery. I thought I could get away with waiting until next spring, since after the surgery I will need a lot of physical therapy. I wasn't too keen on the idea of going back and forth to PT several days/week in the winter, especially when I'd have to walk with a weak knee on the snow and ice. But, wouldn't you know it, ever since I saw the doctor my knee pain is worse! There's no way I can wait until spring. And from what I've read online, it's not good to wait because arthritis sets in. I was upset about the news at first, and the anxiety of the thought of another surgery (I've had two in the past, but that was for "female" stuff) and a painful recovery and then all that PT had me awake at night, but now I'm OK with it and thinking I just want the surgery over and done. It's inevitable - and the problem and pain will only get worse with time - so why worry about it longer than necessary?

 (Sunflower and mexican sunflowers in my neighbor's yard)

I have always wanted some kind of outdoor cat run for my kitties so that they could enjoy the fresh air and chomping on grass, but we never knew how to make a simple run. When I saw a cat run on another blog, I emailed the blog author and asked where she got it. She told me it was just metal crates from Home Depot and that they snap together with plastic fasteners. Perfect! Brian set it up in the front yard the other morning and Zippo and Clementine seemed pretty happy out there.

Monkey, on the other hand, wanted nothing to do with the cat run and clearly showed his displeasure.

Brian and I were sitting on the front porch, watching Zippo and Clem enjoying the run; sniffing the air and munching on grass. Zippo then started pawing at the cage and biting the metal bars. Next thing we knew, he stuck his head through one of the squares! We ran to Zippo and tried to get his head back through the square, to no avail. Zippo was freaking; I was freaking. Brian ran into the garage for the wire cutters. Zippo was actually strangling...I could hear gurgling in his throat. I was hysterical while Brian was trying to cut the cage from around Zippo's neck and in all the chaos, Brian got bit. Zippo got loose and was fine; Brian's finger, not so much. He had a couple of wounds on his pinky finger, so he washed it with soap and water, then held a clean towel on it for awhile to stop the bleeding. Then we put antibiotic ointment on it and bandaged it well. Later, our beekeeper friend told us to use his honey on the bites instead. We had totally forgotten that honey has naturally healing properties. 

("Sorry I bit you, daddy")

All's well that ends well...human and cat are both fine. 

Hope you're having a good week!