June 5, 2015

Celebrating our 

Golden Wedding Anniversary

June 5, 1965 - June 5, 2015

Our wedding reception

Celebrations come in all different forms.  Our celebration for our 50th Wedding Anniversary was very different from the ways that most people would choose to celebrate such a special day.  It was close to midnight when we got home, so this is being written the day after our anniversary.

This plant was blooming today.  It smells much like an orange tree in bloom and

 is in the citrus family according to the man who inspects it each year for the FDA.

June 5, 2015 was a date that was not really a good time for our four children to get together for a celebration.  One of our daughters-in-law called me many months ago and asked if we could celebrate on a different date.  We said that our wish for our anniversary was just to have all of our family together and that the date did not matter.  For the last 10 years we have gathered together as a family around Memorial Day several times to celebrate our anniversary and to spend a long weekend together. 

 The scent is very strong.  We got home about midnight and the wind was calm, 

but I could smell it in the front yard about 100 feet away from the one small plant.

The first gathering was for our 40th anniversary.  A couple of years later, we all agreed every 5 years would not be enough, so we do it as often as we can.  This year it just seemed that August was the best time for all of us to gather together, so our celebration will be in August this year in the hill country of central Texas.  They have reserved a facility in a secluded spot with four cabins, a lodge, a birding blind, and a swimming pool - renting out the entire place for just our family.

Our beautiful, sweet smelling plant (I can't remember the name).

Last week, Ron suggested that we close the office for the day of our anniversary and just spend it together doing anything we wanted.  He offered to take me to the island for bird photos, or whatever I wanted.  He is not really a birder so in the end we decided just to get in the car, head out, and have a relaxing day together.

Our beautiful Magic Valley area

Ron got up early and took my car to have a minor repair done on the air conditioning.  A hose was clogged so that it was leaking drips of water into the car.  He woke me as he left so I could shower, wash my hair, etc. and be ready when he got home.  We began with a stop at the donut shop for a donut (after all it was National Donut Day).  From there we drove to Harlingen to Picket Fence Quilt Shop.  I shopped for a bit while Ron went to get gas.  I was checking out as he returned.

Our lunch spot

Our next stop was a place in Mercedes that our friends the Lawlers had told us about.  It is The Smoking Oak, a new Bar-B-Que place that is starting out gradually by only being open for lunch on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, from 11:00 a.m. - until the food runs out.  They serve brisket and sausage and just a few side dishes.  They have bottled sodas and bottled water.  We found the food excellent, the prices good, and by going early we beat the long line that formed just after we got our food.

A great new place to eat

Following our lunch, we went to the Outlet Mall for less than an hour and looked but didn't buy.  Then we went to McAllen to the mall where I went to a jewelry store to have them check a ring I had gotten recently and they cleaned it very well for me and answered some questions for me.  Next stop was a tool store for Ron.  He replaced a tool he broke last week and selected an additional tool.  Are you excited yet about our special day?

Horse that lives behind Jeff's house

We went to another fabric store and about the time we finished shopping there, our son Jeff called to say that they had finished signing the papers on their house!  It has been almost a year since he started working in McAllen and they started looking for a house.  They knew what they wanted and didn't settle for less.  They have just bought a big house in a rural area that is just perfect for them.  It includes an acre of land surrounded by an orchard on one side, wooded acreage on two sides, and a two lane road on the front.

 Ron working on the locks for Jeff's house

Ron had made plans and had supplies ready to change the locks on their new place (new for them, but not new construction).  We spent the rest of the day with them, with Ron changing the locks and adding padlocks to the gates.  Jeff helped him.  I started weeding a flower bed, but didn't get far in the heat.  Mostly, I watched.  Barb had stopped to pick up pint-sized paint samples and painted  the samples on several walls as she tried to decide what would look best in each room.  A few decisions are made and a few are still pending on the paint.  Even as they worked, God continued to confirm His plans for them and for the house.

 I keep telling the girls they have the best room in the house.  

They will have a perfect view of the sunsets.

The four of us had fun batting around ideas for different areas and for ways to make it function best for their family.  In case you don't know, they have seven children ranging in age from 17 to 3 with three girls who will share a room, two older boys who will share, and two younger boys who will share a room.  That leaves a large master bedroom for Jeff and Barb and a guest room.  They will more than double the number of bathrooms they have had and will start creating wonderful memories in this place soon.

 Ron and me as we wait for a table at Olive Garden

What more could we want, than to be celebrating two outstanding events in one day: our 50th anniversary, and their purchase of a great home?  Humble is the way to describe this amazing couple.  They over and over say that they don't know why God has been so gracious to them.  

 Jeff and Barb - tired by happy

Yesterday on my Facebook page, I mentioned how thankful we are for all four of our sons.  Each son has chosen a wife who is perfect for him.  The girls all have some things in common - mostly their love for the Lord and for their husband, but they are each different in many ways.  God brought these couples together, as he brought Ron and me together.  We all seek to glorify God in our homes.

Our anniversary supper was here.

After the locks were changed and the paint was applied to many spots in the house, the four of us went to Olive Garden for a delicious supper at 8:00.  It was 10:00 when we left for the drive home.  All of us were overflowing with feelings of thankfulness for all God has done for us.  What a wonderful day.  Plus, we still have the family gathering to look forward to in August.

 A beautiful moon rise close to midnight when we got home