Seriously, some days I don’t even feel like I’m 40 years old, yet here John and I are, marking our 40-year wedding anniversary. Who knew that September 11 would turn out to be such a memorable day? At least no one forgets our anniversary date anymore!
In honor of this momentous occasion, John and I took two weeks off of work and celebrated in 40 different ways. From day one, here’s the list…
- Started out September 10 with dinner at George’s Supper Club in Appleton and not only had a great meal but also a pretty tasty Brandy Alexander to top things off.
- Attended a Menasha High School football game — John’s alma mater.
- Strolled College Avenue for Appleton’s weekly downtown farm market.
- Watched our 5-year-old grandson play his first game of soccer — he scored four goals. Nice start to his soccer career!
- On September 11 we had our marriage blessed at our home parish, Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish.
- Went out to eat that night in Milwaukee at The Branded Steer. Not too bad for a restaurant in such close proximity to an airport.
- Flew to Savannah, Georgia, on September 12 and accomplished items 8-23…
- Walked the Riverwalk.
- Ate dinner at Lizzy’s on the Riverwalk.
- Did the hop on/hop off bus tour of the city.
- Ate lunch at Treylor Park’s Double Wide Diner – Fried Chicken Biscuits and grits don’t get much better than that!
- Walked Savannah’s Historic District.
- Had a snack at Leopold’s Ice Cream. Their peanut butter chocolate chip ice cream was amazing, no wonder people rave about this place!
- Explored the historic Forsyth Park.
- Took the nighttime Savannah ghost tour
- Attended Mass at The Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist.
- Grabbed donuts from Rise.
- Ate the lunch buffet at The Pirate’s House.
- Went for a horse-drawn carriage ride.
- Viewed the Kessler Collection (dinosaurs, geodes, art) at the Bohemian Hotel in the Plant Riverside District.
- Enjoyed a brew (expensive but refreshing) on the Riverwalk.
- Took the water taxi across the Savannah River.
- Ate lunch at Corleone’s Italian restaurant. Excellent food and crème brûlée for dessert.
- Back home, we walked to Sunset Park in Kimberly to take in the beautiful river view and picked up donuts from Mom & Pop’s Bakery.
- Enjoyed music by Bazooka Joe at Jones Park in Appleton.
- Attended a varsity volleyball at St. Francis Xavier High School (the Lady Hawks swept the series)!
- Golfed nine holes at Hickory Hills Country Club in Chilton. Intended to golf 18, but the mosquitoes got the better of us!
- Had lunch at Mihm’s Charcoal Grill in Menasha. Best burgers in the Valley!
- Attended Irishfest at Jones Park.
- Enjoyed the Lion’s Tale Oktoberfest celebration in Neenah.
- Took a morning stroll along the Fox River through Telulah Park in Appleton.
- Enjoyed a cup of coffee/smoothie at Tempest on the riverfront, John’s first coffee shop experience.
- Had dinner at supper club #2, Michiel’s Bar & Grill in Menasha. Impressive food and service!
- Drove to Lake Geneva to relive a portion of our honeymoon from 40 years ago.
- Walked several miles of the Shore Path that circles Lake Geneva. Amazing mansions built by some of the wealthiest folks in the Chicago area back in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
- Had dinner at Mars Resort (another supper club, go figure) on Lake Como.
- Spent the day in Warrens at the world’s largest cranberry festival. We have more respect for cranberry farmers after seeing what life is like on the cranberry bogs!
- Drove to Green Lake to attend their Harvest Fest, came home with some new fall décor and a bottle of cranberry wine.
- Watched the Irish of Notre Dame beat the Wisconsin Badgers in college football. While we love both teams, our heart belongs to Notre Dame as our oldest daughter is an alumnus.
- Topped our two-week vacation off with a huge last-minute win for the Packers over San Francisco on Sunday Night Football.
To be honest, every day spent with John feels like a holiday to me, but those two weeks were incredible! Such a great time to reconnect with each other, eat amazing food, shop, do the tourist thing, and bask in gratitude for the abundance of blessings we’ve been given in our lives together.
Here’s to the next 40! Love you, John! Wouldn’t want to do this journey with anyone but you!
Happy Anniversary! What a clever idea for celebrating. We’re coming up on 25, but at our present rate of about 2 dates/year, 25 might be a shock to our system (and our budget)!
When John and I were celebrating our 25th anniversary we had two children in Catholic colleges, one in a Catholic high school and one in a Catholic middle school, so we were in the same boat. Through the years we found clever (and inexpensive) ways to celebrate our anniversary. Our big trip each year was a one-night stay somewhere in our state where we went biking on Rails To Trails routes. Things change when your kids have all graduated from college, you’re debt-free and have an empty nest. Your day will come!