See what I did there? If our fourth wedding anniversary were a movie sequel, that’s probably how the poster would treat the title. (Yes, I’m aware it’s a cheeky nod to Scream 4.) As we’ve done each year, here’s a little recap of how we celebrated four years of marriage last Thursday. You can find our three-year recap and earlier anniversary posts on the blog. This year’s celebration started, as most days do, with breakfast.
I made Strawberry-Orange Stuffed French Toast with raspberry butter as a nod to a favorite meal from our Alaskan honeymoon. Presentation wasn’t perfect (do I get points for the strawberry hearts?), but I balanced that out with flowers in our wedding colors.
We agreed not to exchange gifts this year—our new laundry project was meant to be a shared present—yet I cheated a little when I found bee-themed stationery from Smock Paper. Sherry is an epic list maker and our wedding invitation featured bees, so the set felt like the perfect, small indulgence. Full disclosure: Smock is a sponsor, but this purchase was entirely my doing.
They didn’t have a bee-themed large sticky pad, but I picked a pad in the closest color scheme since Sherry was low on notepads. The big sticky pads are actually getting used, unlike the smaller ones that lived in our junk drawer. We loved the simple eco-friendly sentiment printed on the bottom: use this to do good.
What I spent in money, Sherry matched in thoughtfulness—she wrote a homemade card listing thirty things she, Clara, and Burger love about me, ten from each of them. She loves lists, and this one was even better than my usual “Love, John” sign-off.
Beyond paper goods, the day was for doing things together. After a morning of work, we escaped to lunch at one of our favorite casual spots, Sticks Kebob Shop—plus we used a Groupon, because frugal romance never hurts.
Next we visited Crossroads Art Center, a local gallery we’d heard about for years but never toured. It showcases lots of local artists; photography inside wasn’t allowed, so we browsed instead. We admired Morgan E. McKinney’s work but didn’t find anything within our budget—someday.
We did fall for a set of $4 paintings-turned-notecards by Sherri Conley. With generous mats and frames, they seemed like the perfect small, calming addition to our master bathroom, so we brought a few home.
One card literally read “I Love You,” which felt appropriate for our anniversary. Coincidentally, both Sherry and I picked that same plane-themed card while standing in different parts of the booth. Good minds, apparently.
We continued our little traditions by snapping the annual corny anniversary photo. Every year on 7/7 we try to take a family picture to frame. This year proved more challenging—our 14-month-old wasn’t quite into the idea of staring at a beeping camera and smiling. We managed to capture one with stacked heads that embraces the cheesiness.
We also stopped by our favorite photobooth—the authentic, film-developing booth at New York Deli—for the yearly strip. The booth was having an off day so some frames came out smeary, and Clara cried through the entire first strip. We discarded the very first attempt because the booth started too early and the strip captured me looking puzzled while calling Sherry in. The third strip, however, delivered some happy squeals, which felt good enough.
After a little in-the-car blog tending (what did people do before smartphones?), it was time for dinner.
We chose Brio Tuscan Grille because it was where we held our rehearsal dinner in 2007, and we hadn’t been back since our second anniversary. It was also our daughter’s first visit. There’s something delightfully incongruous about a sippy cup, Goldfish crackers, and a Dr. Seuss book on a carrera marble table, but those simple items (plus her own pasta) kept Clara happy after a long day.
To cap the day, Sherry followed a four-year pattern and chopped off a chunk of her hair—another July 7th haircut. Out went the honorary fifth team member of the blog: her ponytail. She took mirror photos because I apparently make her nervous to pose for. I still think she looks great.
She also assures me the hair can still be pulled back into a tiny pony when we’re painting, so all is well. Coincidentally, we’re working on the laundry room right now, so that will come in handy.
We had a wonderful July 7th, but already our thoughts are drifting toward next year’s five-year milestone. Inspired by our Alaskan honeymoon, we’re toying with the idea of celebrating year five in Hawaii—Alaska’s non-contiguous counterpart, if you will. Nothing’s set yet, but saying it out loud might be the first step toward actually booking the trip. It’s been a while since we flew anywhere for vacation, so maybe five will be the year.