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Seventeen

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And suddenly, we’ve reached 17.

It’s our seventeenth wedding anniversary today, this October 12th, Columbus Day.

Seventeen years ago, when we married, it was also Columbus Day. And it was Don’s day off. He was doing a one-man show, Jeeves Takes Charge, in Nevada City, California. Nevada City is a charming town in the foothills of the Sierra Madre mountains. Since we wanted a small wedding with no hassles, we decided to get married there.

Don did a lot of the footwork since he was already there. He found the site (The National Hotel), the man who officiated, the florist, and the photographer. My sweet sister found my dress for me and gave it to me as a gift.

I didn’t want my family to have to deal with the expenses involved in flying to California for a wedding. Whenever Don and I even started to think of the logistics of the whole thing, we got very stressed. So, with the blessing of our respective families, we did it our way. Don’s brother and sister-in-law were there. Our friends Phil and Clare were there. Phil ran the the theater where Don was performing. And that’s it.

I flew up the day before the wedding, watched a matinee of Don’s show, went to a dinner thrown for us by some friends of the theater. The next day, we got married in the parlor of the historic National Hotel.

Oh, there was one complication. I had a walking cast on my left ankle. I had fallen down our back steps in August and, though I held out hope the cast would be off by our wedding, it wasn’t. I cried and cried at the thought of going through the wedding with a huge cast on my leg, but Don said, “It will be part of our story.”

And it was. Suzie, my sister-in-law, helped me down the long stairway (which functioned like an aisle in a church). I was determined to walk down those stairs! When I saw Don, I started crying. Then Don started crying. Then Suzie, Ron, Phil and Clare joined in.

We were all crying. Through the entire ceremony.

I will say that Don and I were ‘present’ for every moment of that ceremony. I remember everything. There was none of the stress associated with a ‘big’ wedding. Afterward, we drove through the streets of Nevada City in a horse-drawn carriage. Since it was a holiday, lots of people were out and about and everybody waved at us. It was a gorgeous fall day.

It was perfect.

We won’t mention the stain that appeared on my wedding gown as we were eating dinner, when Don, who was eating spare ribs, used his napkin. It turned out he was actually using my gown. Mortified, he confessed, and after my initial shock, we all laughed. In a way, it was also perfect.

Another part of our story.

That, by the way, is my favorite picture of us from that day. It was taken by my sister-in-law.

Happy Anniversary to us.

By the way, my dad is in the hospital. He was admitted yesterday after suffering from severe back pain. There might be some kidney or bladder issues. We’re not sure. He’s in good spirits, perhaps because he was eating chocolate cake and ice cream when I called him. I’ll keep you posted.

Happy Monday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

 

Comments

  1. Happy Anniversary!! I hope you both have a wonderful day.

    Wishing for a full, speedy recovery for your dad.

  2. A very happy 17th anniversary Claudia and Don! Absolutely love what Don said about your cast. I wish you many, many more happy years!

  4. Happy Anniversary! Your wedding sounds perfect to me, all love, little expense, excitement about getting MARRIED and not stress about the WEDDING. And still going strong! Best wishes to Dad for a speedy and full recovery, too. Have a wonderful day.

  5. Happy anniversary!! I’m glad you remember Everything from your marriage. I can’t remember our marriage (12 years ago) after we stood in front of the priest and then suddenly was out of the door, haha. I couldn’t remember it at that time either!!
    Hope you have a great anniversary today.
    Love Elzie

  6. Happy Anniversary Claudia and Don. Love the picture and I hope your Dad goes home soon. Enjoy your special day. Doris

  7. Happy Anniversary to you and Don! Such a wonderful couple and I love your story (especially the napkin aka dress story). I hope your Dad will feel better soon. My Mom has been having some stomach issues and I am anxious for her to improve soon.
    hugs,
    Linda

    • He has a fracture in his spine. Just found out. So, unfortunately, he has to go to the rehab facility for several weeks. I know he’s really upset.

  8. Happy Anniversary and I hope you have a wonderful day celebrating however you choose!

    Our anniversary is Friday and it will be our 33rd! We will go to our favorite Italian restaurant for lunch, hit some thrifts stores that are near the restaurant and end up at Lowes for marked down perennials. One of these years maybe it will be Paris but first the mortgage must be paid off and both sons out of college and both will occur in 4 years!

    • Hey, we’re talking about celebrating at Cracker Barrel! Happy Anniversary to you in advance, Kim!

  10. Happy Anniversary! Each day is a blessing, when you are with the one you love! Hope your Dad will be up and about quickly! ;)

  11. Happy Anniversary! Great wedding memories even the BBQ sauce on your wedding dress! Hope your dad is feeling better soon.

  12. Happy Anniversary!! Speedy recovery for your Dad!!! My sis and I had a double wedding 35 years ago on Oct. 11 in Placerville, a town In the Foothills, we LOVE Grass Valley!!!! She is still married, I am not, but remain great friends with my EX!! Have a happy day!

  13. Such happy memories! As someone else said, it is about the MARRIAGE,,, not the wedding which is just a minute in time. I feel so sad for so many young people going into debt for a party that lasts, usually, less than 6 or 8 hours. And that debt lasts for several years.
    Glad they could diagnose your Dad pretty quickly so they can start rehab and have him feeling stronger.
    Hope your celebration today is glorious!!

  14. Happy Anniversary to you two love birds! Love that picture. What wonderful memories of that special day.

    Hoping your Dad gets better real soon.

    Judy

  15. Happy Anniversary Claudia and Don! Hope you have a wonderful celebration today and that you have many, many more wonderful years together. Our anniversary is also this month. We will celebrate 56 years on the 24th. October is a beautiful month for a wedding.

    Hope your Dad is feeling better and back home real soon.

  17. Happy anniversary to you and Don! I’ve been to Nevada City and can just imagine how lovely your wedding must have been! Such a beautiful place.

    Prayers for you dad, for a speedy recovery.

  19. Happy Anniversary to you both. I adore the story about Don using dress as a napkin, he must have felt terrible, I was laughing….. Hope Dad is better soon.

  21. Lovely photo, lovely story.
    Happy Anniversary! Fingers crossed for your dad’s quick recovery.

  23. I love the photo and the wedding memories. Happy Anniversary to the cutest couple on the internet! Next August will be fifty years for us, so you guys are still newlyweds to me.

    • I’m so impressed by long marriages like yours, Shanna. I suppose we could make it to our 50th, but we got married in our forties, so that may not happen! Thank you.

  25. I love wedding stories! They are invariably full of joy and fun and humor, and overlaid with love, as yours are. Happy 17th, Claudia and Don, and, of course, many many more. Speedy recovery for your Dad. We just went through some medical issues with my Dad, too.he’s on the mend, as your Dad will be.

    • I’ll write more about Dad tomorrow – some glitches about Medicaid and what facility he has to go to. Thank you, Wendy.

  26. Don always seems to know the wise thing to say at an upsetting moment…The little things that go wrong are the ones that make your story such fun…How ordinary it might be if everything went right…I also believe the little weddings are the best…Spending all that money can cause problems right away when it all has to be paid for…No couple just starting out needs a large debt hanging over their heads…The two of you look so happy in that picture…and you still do…Happy 17th Anniversary Claudia & Don…and Best wishes for a fast recovery to your dad…I know he is going to be miserable for a while…By the way…Did you see any of The National Hotel’s ghost residents while you were there?

  27. Happy Anniversary! Wishing you many more wonderful years together! I hope your Dad begins to feel better soon.

  28. Happy Anniversary to you and Don. One thing I admire so much about you and Don (and there are many things) is that you live an authentic life. You both live your passion and follow your own paths. Others live lives of “I should” and you two live full and happy lives together without the need of approval. Bravo! I will say a prayer for your daddy. Both my Aunt and my Daddy spent time in rehabilitation facilities after their own falls, and both came back home after they were strong and stable enough to do so. I have a lot of faith in the professionals who do that kind of work. They will help your daddy too so he can return safely to the home he loves.

    Big Texas Hugs,
    Susan and Bentley

  29. Happy Anniversary to you and Don! Love your story, especially the part about Don using your dress as a napkin by accident! And I almost got misty too thinking of you walking down the aisle and starting to cry — and everyone else crying too!! Precious!
    Are you doing anything extra special for the day?

    • We went to Cracker Barrel, Pat! Silly, but we hardly ever go there. I’m avoiding too much salt and trying to eliminate sugar and both of those things are in abundance there. But we figured we’d treat ourselves…for a special day. Thank you, Pat.

  30. Happy Anniversary! My wedding was tiny and I never regretted it. It was a second marriage for me (first wedding was even tinier) and a first for my husband. We had immediate family only. Sprung for decent food and someone to serve and clean up, but had it right in the kitchen of the house we married in. My oldest son just married in a very expensive wedding and spent a week in Fiji for a honeymoon. Nice, but not my style. To each his own. They paid for it. I hope your father will soon be feeling better.

    • Not our style, either. Frankly, I’ve been in a lot of weddings, sung at scads of them, and everyone always seems stressed out. We didn’t want that. Don had been married before and I didn’t want a ton of focus on me…I’m not comfortable with that. Thank you!

  31. Happy Anniversary to the two of you! I love the idea that anything that day becomes part of your story. So true!

    Blessings to your dad – hope he heals well and will soon be home.

  33. Happy Anniversary! The photo says it all.
    I’m sorry to read about your father (read the part about the spine fracture). Praying his spirits stay “up” and that the therapy he receives in rehab has him moving about and without pain very, very soon.

  35. Oh, Happy Anniversary!! I know Nevada City well, so I was delighted to read that it is where you tied the knot.
    And I wish I’d been there seventeen years ago to see Don’s play!
    I have stayed at the National Hotel with my sister, and I have a dear friend whose niece is getting married at the Foundry in Nevada City next month.
    Honestly, if the two of you ever decide to revisit the area, I live close enough that it would be fabulous to at least get to meet you!
    Congratulations to the both of you – I find it completely delightful to read the stories about your life together, and about everything else on your blog, as well.

    • We stayed in the Bridal Suite that night and it was lovely, HeidiAnn. The next morning, we went across the street to a restaurant and had breakfast with my brother and sister-in-law. It was lovely. We’d love to get back there some day! And if we do, I’ll be sure to let you know.

  36. Happy anniversary to the bride & groom! Great wedding stories too. I’ve never been married but just about everyone I know has AT LEAST one funny, quirky and/or disaster-y wedding story. And most, like you, can laugh about them now. I’m guessing it might actually feel kind of surreal to have every detail go off without a hitch. Rather like a robot wedding – LOL. And hey, at least your cast was white – it works!!! Have a wonderful 17th! You certainly have a gorgeous day for it. ?

    • My cast was white and I pulled a big white stretchy nylon sock over it. I made the photographer take photos of me ‘above the cast’ except for one. I’ve shown it on the blog before – I’ll show it again, soon. Thank you!

  38. Easy to see why that picture is your favorite-it says it all! Hope you two are thoroughly enjoying your day and wishing you many more to come.

  39. Happy #17, and wishes for many more years of shared joy.

    I hope all goes well with your father. I just got home from taking my mother to the doctor for a uti.

  40. What a beautiful bride and a wonderful wedding story! I especially like the napkin/dress part. So cute and memorable.

  43. Oh, I hope you two have had a happy day today. Congrats!

    I had a small wedding, too. My husband had been married previously with the big-do…and we were going to go thru with all that again but then my dad fell ill and it would be months before he’d be able to walk me down the aisle, plus hub’s family were all in other states. So, with blessings all around because we decided not to delay, we too did it our way and, in the end, it was just me, him and the minister perched on a hill overlooking a lake at sunset. And that was a few decades ago. Frankly, I’d begun to balk at $500 for the main wedding cake (260 invited guests were planned) when we needed blinds and carpet for the ‘new’ fixer-upper house we’d bought. It all turned out just right as I guess these things are meant to do. I hadn’t stepped inside a JC Penney in years but somebody had given us a gift certificate. I walked into the women’s clothing department and spied an uncomplicated, white lace dress that had my name on it although I’d gone in the store for something else altogether, like a frying pan. I got my off-the-rack wedding dress for $20 (on sale) that day. Who’d have thunk? There was only one, and it was in my size. My priorities might have been different had I been younger but, closer to 40 than 30, I was perfectly satisfied.

    I’m hopeful that if your dad is eating cake and ice cream that this will be an easier diagnosis. Back pain can be a hard thing to source. He’s in the right place for them to figure it out.

  47. Happy Anniversary!!!! That is a darling picture of you two!!! The happiness just radiates from the picture.
    Love the ribs story!!! Don, it sounds just like something I would do!!!….to my own dress!!!
    Hope Dad is feeling better…prayers your way….for Dad and 50 more years for you two!!!
    Addie

  48. Just look at all the joy and love in that picture! Happy Anniversary you two – may you journey together be long and filled with even more joy & love.

  50. You two are such beautiful people!!! The love and happiness you share even shines out through my computer. HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!!!!!
    Hope your dad gets well sooner than soon. Keep the chocolate coming! My 92 year old daddy loves chocolate, too.
    jane-in-tx

  51. Claudia, I am so happy that you published that wonderful, joyful photograph again. Both of you look as though you’re on Cloud Nine. And I will never get tired of that story about the barbecue sauce.

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