Celebrate, Friday Favorite

Friday Favorites: A Forty-Fourth Anniversary, See’s Chocolates, and Jon Batiste

80 Comments

Today is our forty-fourth wedding anniversary.  Hoo-boy! As I like to note, those who get married in Maine in March are apt to be hardy couples who can weather most anything. And so it is with Clif and me.

Because of the pandemic, there will be no going anywhere special. No matter. We bought plenty of tasty treats, including shrimp—the highest on the food chain that we’ll eat—good bread, real butter—oh, wowsah!—and a small chocolate cake. Holy cats! I can’t remember the last time I had chocolate cake.

We also bought some Sees chocolates and nuts, which will last us for a long while.

As we got married in March in Maine, you might think that we went somewhere warm for our honeymoon, but you would be wrong. Instead, we went to Montréal, where the snowbanks were as high as they were in Maine, and the snowplows traveled at a clip that was terrifying.

But what a wonderful trip it was, and yesterday Clif and I had a lovely time reminiscing about that gray European-like city. We ate tourtière pie, went to small cafés and pastry shops, visited a museum with a fabulous King Tut exhibit, stayed in a delightful hotel that could have been in the middle of Paris, and laughed at a smartly dressed woman who swore in French when a car splashed her at an intersection.

In those days, we traveled with the help of AAA, with little bound paper strips of maps called TripTiks. Readers, they were awesome and really made traveling easier. We found our delightful hotel through AAA. I think we just stumbled on the cafés, but that was forty-four years ago, and we might have used AAA for guidance with that, too.

Anyway, despite the passage of time, it made us both smile to talk and think about going to Montréal.

This week, for music in honor of our anniversary, I am turning to the buoyant Jon Batiste and his “I Need You.”

 

Here are some simple pleasures and favorites from blogging friends.

From Piglet in Portugal, a jar of smiles.

Ju-Lyn, of Touring my Backyard, got warmth from a snowy scene. (Someone from Maine just might have sent her a card.)

Thistles and Kiwis shared the many wonderful things popping up in Wellington.

Dawn, from Change is Hard, featured a picture of one of the loveliest harbingers of spring in the northern United States, the red-winged blackbird.

 

80 thoughts on “Friday Favorites: A Forty-Fourth Anniversary, See’s Chocolates, and Jon Batiste”

  7. Happy Anniversary! I well remember See’s Candies; I used to buy them in California. If you’re ever inclined to try something more local, I can recommend the Chatham Candy Manor in Chatham, MA. I just received some, and believe me — I’ve never put such a good chocolate in my mouth! I love that they’re a local business, and that they’ve been around for 65 years — the history on their website’s wonderful. Here’s to at least 65 years for you and Clif!

  8. Happy anniversary, Laurie. I can’t think of a better place to have a honeymoon than Montréal, but then that’s where I went to university and met my husband. Great choices all around!

  13. Happy Anniversary! Glad you shared good memories and some tasty treats.

  14. Congratulations on a married journey well travelled with, I hope, many years ahead. You both look very happy in that photograph – enjoy this milestone.

  15. That is a wonderful photo of the two of you! Happy 44th, Laurie and Clif! You are already someplace special to celebrate your anniversary. There is no place like home. 🙂🙂 🐱 ❤️

  18. Happy Anniversary. When you say you can’t remember the last time you ate chocolate cake does that mean it’s a long time since you had one. Or is your memory becoming more like mine? I can’t remember what I had for breakfast yesterday! Enjoy the chocolates.

  21. Chocolate cake! That is definitely going to make for a happy anniversary. As part of an older couple, can I recommend enjoying your youth while you can. 🙂

    I enjoyed the music of the day.

  22. Happy anniversary to you both! You look fabulous. It must be 40+ years of love. I like the way you celebrate and love your reminiscences of Montreal. Congrats!

  24. Congratulations, Laurie & Clif! 44 years – fabulous!

    ❤❤❤ your couple photo – you looks so together & serene & happy. And your new hairdo – very chic!

    1. Thanks so much! As for the hairdo…one year of not going to the hairdresser’s. I cut the sides, and Clif cuts the back. Seems to work. 😉

  25. Congratulations Laurie and Clif, and what a sweet photo of you both…
    I think it was Mark Twain who said it took 40 years to really enjoy being married…something like that!
    I loved your story of your Montreal honeymoon …it seems you got Montreal and Paris rolled into one!
    Have a happy day, and enjoy the chocolate cake.

  26. Hearty congratulations. A lovely photograph as a tribute to a life of love. I may have mentioned that I am not a great fan of chocolate, but that See’s box wouldn’t last me very long 🙂

  27. Congrat’s on 44. We just purchased tickets to see Henry V on our anniversary (28) in July! May the theatres be open again. – Oscar

  30. Congratulations on 44 happy years. Enjoy the chocolate cake, and if there’s any left over do remember your poor English cousin on the other side of the pond!

  32. Sweet post! Love the photo of you two–congratulations! Forty-four is an achievement! (My first was 21 years and I’m now in year 25 of marriage #2). The video brightened my day!

  34. Congratulations! That is a lovely photo of the two of you. See’s Chocolates was very big in Seattle; Allan’s first girlfriend worked there for years! A friend of mine also worked there and said she ate way too much chocolate, something about employees were encouraged to sample so that they could describe and promote the wares. 🙂

  35. Pingback: enjoying the new garden – Touring My Backyard

  36. Happy Anniversary, Laurie and Cliff. It sounds like you had a wonderful day reminiscing. When I married we lived in Vermont and honeymooned in Maine! Lol. Enjoy your chocolates!

  37. Forty-four years?? Congratulations to both of you! It’s a testament to making the right choice in the first place, then to working through any possible blips along the way. Here’s to another forty-four … or more!!

  39. Happy anniversary to you both.

    It’s wonderful reminiscing about special times together. Forty-four years is extraordinary. Congratulations. I’ve never been to Montreal, but I hope to go one day. I’m originally from Ontario, Canada, and I’ve spent time in Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia. It’s on my long list of hoped-for travel.

    I love Jon Batiste’s new single, the video, and his joyful approach to music and life. He’s a gem.

    xo

Comments are closed.