I am a Victorian Soul, who lives in a small townhouse that was built in the mid 1970's, not a huge Mega Mansion!! I just recently lost my Hubby Joe, who was a Retired Letter Carrier. I worked night shift as an RN on a Hospital based Rehabilitation( Physical Medicine) Unit for 37 years before I had Knee Replacement Surgery and officially Retired in 2019 after 41 years working in Direct Patient Care ... I am so glad that we retired at 62 years of age and got to spend that time together before he passed....I still do love Retirement!!!!

I DABBLE IN A BIT OF THIS AND THAT!!!!

" IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO BE WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE BEEN"
George Eliot
George Eliot was actually a pen name for a woman named Mary Anne Evans......

BLOGGING FOR FUN AND FRIENDSHIP!!!!!!

Saturday, August 11, 2018

The Story of Us, Our 40th Wedding Anniversary!!!

 Welcome!!

Joe and I got married on August 12, 1978

 Now it is August 12, 2018

40 years of Marriage!!!

Yes, Joe and I have been married for 40 years!!!!

It is hard to believe that I have spent 2/3rds of my life with Joe.......

3 years ago, when we were married 37 years, I posted about our "Wall of Fame" that reflects all of our years of Marriage......

Today, I am reposting that post.......

I have also added an update at the end of this post and shared how we celebrated our 40th Wedding Anniversary..........

 Posted on August 12, 2015

37 Years of Marriage Reflected on a Gallery Wall!!!
                                                        

                                                                August 12th, 1978

37 years ago............

We were married...........
 This is a long post filled with a lot of personal photos that I do not usually share on my blog so have a seat and grab a cup of coffee or tea..........

It was close to 90 degrees that day........
That was the day when I left the life that I once led as Debbie Kolojejchick and became Debbie Barna......
 But our story started long before that......

Joe and I met as co workers at , of all things , a BINGO run by a neighborhood Hose Company of which my sister's husband was a member, in the Fall of 1974
I was a checker and Joe , who was employed by the guy who was paid to run the Bingo for the Hose Company , was a Caller.

I was 16 years old and a senior in High School.
Joe was almost 4 years older than I was, lived in Freeland which was an hour away from the town I lived in and was working as Supervisor in the Shipping Department of American Tobacco, which was a factory, located 20 minutes from where I lived.
I was already dating another guy from New York, who was a freshman at a local College that I met while participating in a Mock Government event for area High Schools.........

My first date with Joe was March 8th, 1975.

We went to Freeland, got a flat tire, I stayed in George's Gas Station with George watching Carol Burnett while Joe and his cousin changed the flat tire!
 I was still dating the other guy from New York, which I broke up with shortly afterward.

I graduated High School, entered Nursing School and was engaged to Joe when I was 18 years old.

He was almost 22 years old.
 We put a down payment on our Townhouse in December of 1977 and closed on our house in March of 1978.

I was a home owner at 20 years old, before we were even married.
I did not want to live anywhere close to my parents so the townhouse that we bought was located 25 minutes across the Susquehanna River from my parents and 40 minutes from Joe's parents.
Take my word for it, our townhouse did not look like this when we bought it shortly after it was built.
The original plan was that we would live here for 5 years and then build a house over on the other side of the river where I grew up.

37 years later, we are still here.

The best laid plans go astray.....

I am good with that and would never consider moving back to where I grew up because I am a firm believer in "What is meant to be, will be" and I am supposed to be here.......

In the past 37 years.......

My Dad, the first love of my life,  passed away suddenly at 67 years old........
I had just turned 30 years old.  I think of him every day of my life.......

My Mom sold the house that my Dad built and that I had lived in since I was 4 years old until I married, 3 months after he died.

It was the BEST thing that she ever did and she moved into a Senior Citizen Apartment Building in the same area.

She lived for 17 years without the love of her life and then finally at 84 years old, she joined him.
That was 11 years ago.


  Okay, now back to My Gallery Wall as it is now the popular thing to call it in Blog Land.......

This wall has been a Gallery Wall for many years but I always called it my Wall of Fame!!

It represents 37 years of Marriage........

I apologize that some of the pictures are dark but this is a wall down the long narrow hall way that connects our Living Room with the Kitchen and has very little natural lighting......
 Let's start closest to the Living Room.......
 I divided the wall into 2 halves because we have 2 sons.......
 This is Jim, our younger son's side...........

This side of the wall mainly showcases Jim.

I was 25 years old when Jim was born on December 7, 1983

One of Jim's High School Senior pictures......
This collage shares Santa and Easter Bunny photos......
Both of our sons did not really like Santa so these are my Screaming Meamie pictures!!!
I never got Joey to sit on Santa's lap without screaming but Jim did later when he was older.....
They both liked the Easter Bunny though!!
This is the original announcement that my parent's sent out after my Dad built our new home in a development called Knob Hill.........
It was the second house that my Dad built for my Mom.........

And the house that he would die in........

This was our beloved Savanna.....
Jim's Senior Picture Proofs......
Another Senior photo of Jim......
Joe and I at a concert in Ceasar's in Atlantic City.......
Look at Joe's dark hair!!!

Moving further down the Wall........
This was taken also at Ceasar's in Atlantic City when we took the boys to their first concert......
Joe had free comps to see The Moody Blues!!!

This was taken at my nephew John's Wedding ..........
Joey was in the Wedding Party.....
My Baby Boy.......
I wanted to be a young Mother because I was raised by older parents ( My parents would have been 96 years old this year) so our little Family was complete when I was 25 years old and Joe was 29 years old.

When taking these photos, I realized that I had not added one very important person , not only in Jim's life but in our life, to this Wall of Fame.......
So I replaced a photo of the boys taken at the Bloomsburg Fair with a more fitting photo......
Jim and our Daughter-in-Love, Danielle, who has been such a Blessing in our lives......

I do have to do a bit more updating in the future to do......

Both of our sons were in Cub Scouts and I was a Den Mother!!
Now we move to the middle of the Wall.....
Our Wedding picture......
And a picture taken for a Parish Photo Album at our church.......
This was the year of our 30th Wedding Anniversary......

Now moving down to Joey's side of the Wall.......
Joey was born when I was 23 years old on December 29, 1981
My Baby Boy....
This was taken while on vacation in Niagra Falls.......
More photos taken for that Parish Photo Album.......
Joe looks like he is running for Political Office in this photo!!
Further down the Wall.....
Joey's Senior Picture Proofs.....
A Family photo......
Joey's Senior Picture from High School.....
And his graduation from College.......
Another Senior Picture.....
Our Baby Boys taken at Day Care........
Our Engagement Picture......
 Look at Joe's hair!!!

The Boys at Easter time with our sweet Cassie.......
And that is our Wall of Fame!!!

This hand painted picture was a gift from a fellow blogger memorializing our 2 precious fur babies that are waiting at the Rainbow Bridge for us......
So here we are 37 years later......

We have been through Richer and Poorer.....

Factory Lay Offs and Shut Downs and finally a more secure job for Joe as a Mail Man!!

And through Sickness and Health.......

Joe after surgery to remove 100's of warts on both feet.......
I went through 3 surgeries in 3 years including surgery to remove a cancerous tumor.......

And I remain Cancer free.......

But I have Knee Replacement Surgery in my future......

Our Boys have become self sufficient hard working, happy adults......
They have moved out on their own but right up the street in the Apartment Complex right next to our townhouse development.......

They come here to eat and celebrate every Holiday and as long as they still can and want to the doors are wide open for them!!

My Family is my Heart and Soul.....
Danielle, Jim, Joey and Joe.......taken on a trip last year to Washington, D.C.
Joey, Joe and Jim.......
Our little Family became 5 about 7 years ago.......
Jim and Danielle's story is a lot like ours.....

They met working together at Target and were friends first, but after they attended my niece's Wedding together, things changed....

They now live together in a townhouse and work the over night shift at Target.

Jim  has worked there since Target first opened here in our area.
Jim and Joey

Joey is an IT Specialist for Web. Com and has his own apartment.......
Joey with fellow co- workers.....

Joe will be retiring soon......
As a Letter Carrier for the United States Post Office.......
He is still the  "Joker" that I met 41 years ago!
And still loves his pizza!!

I have recently went Part Time after working full time for 37 years as a Staff Nurse in a Hospital......
32 of these years have been night shift.......
Yes, we have weathered many a storm..........
And I have embraced my age, deciding to Age Gracefully, and decided to go Gray!!
I am enjoying working Part Time and we are preparing for Joe's Retirement........

We will be celebrating our 37th Wedding Anniversary with a quiet Dinner at home, just Joe and I...

I am off but Joe is working so he will be picking up dinner from our favorite Italian Restaurant, Leggio's, on his way home from work.......

But we will do a bit more celebrating on Sunday when we celebrate Joe's 61st birthday, which is actually the 17th !!!!

Just our little Family of 5!!!

And that is just how we like it!!

Thanks so much for sitting through The Story of Our Lives!!!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UPDATE, August 12, 2018

A lot has happened in the 3 years since I did this post......

Joe has now retired from the United States Post Office as a Letter Carrier......
This photo was taken when he came home after his last day of work......

Joe took the first 14 months of his retirement off and then realized that he needed to get out of the house and talk to people other than just me!!!

So he applied and was hired as a cashier at Wegman's and works from 12-20 hours a week......
He is happier and so am I!!!!!!!

Hopefully, in another year I will have my knee replacement surgery and then retire.......

It is hard to believe that 40 years have gone by.........
In my one of my recent posts, I mentioned that we returned to our "roots" when we played Bingo at our church Festival as we met at a Bingo!!!
This awaited me when I came home from work on Saturday morning......
A Happy Anniversary Balloon!!
And a dozen roses.........
Love the pretty Fall colors!!!
A simple card and an extra rose bud that Joe discovered when he unwrapped the bouquet to put it in the vase........
We enjoyed a quiet dinner for 2 at home..........

Joe stopped by Valley Seafood which is a local Seafood distributor and bought dinner........

Red Roasted Potatoes.......
Fried Scallops.........
And the Lobster tails that Joe made........
This photo was taken after he took them out from under the Broiler........

I learned a very long time ago that Joe makes a far better Lobster tail than any restaurant does......

It was a lovely dinner.......
You can see that we even have our own Butter Warmers........
 A few years ago, I did a post about an Anniversary tablescape featuring a lot of photos of our Wedding......
Click HERE if you wold like to read it......

In 2 weeks, I will be hosting a family turkey dinner for our sons........

Our son Jim and our daughter-in-love Danielle are in Atlantic City this weekend for a few days on vacation.......

We will be celebrating again on Friday, August 17th when Joe turns 64 years old........

I hope you enjoyed my little trip down Memory Lane........

And I hope you will be back to visit again soon.......

Thanks to those who took the time out of their busy day to spend a little bit of time with me!!

If you do not have a blog, PLEASE  give me some way to reply to your comment, maybe by including your email in your comment.  If I can not find a way to reach you, I will reply on the post where you commented so please check back......
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33 comments:

  1. I recently went through knee replacement. As a nurse, you’v Got this made. Just remember PT is the most important part. Happy Anniversary!��

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  2. Congratulations on 40 years of marriage, your ruby anniversary. Wishing you many more happy years together.

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  3. Congratulations on your Anniversary. Wishes for many more happy days. smiles

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    1. Thanks so much for stopping by!! I could not find any other way to get in touch with you so I am doing so here.
      Hugs,
      Deb

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  4. You all are both so cute. Congrats.

    Hubby and I have been married 47 years.

    And today August 12 is our Granddaughters 12th Birthday.

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    Replies
    1. Pamela,
      Thanks so much for visiting and for your Anniversary good wishes!! I could not find any other way to get in touch with you so I am doing so here.
      Hugs
      Deb

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  5. What a beautiful post! Love, love all the pictures. I have family pictures displayed throughout my apartment..such treasured memories! Two more things we have in common: I have a drawing of the house I grew up in, and my son has worked for Target for several years.
    Blessings to you and your husband on your anniversary.
    Linda

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  6. Happy 40th Anniversary! I love seeing photos of couples at various stages in their lives. Thank you for sharing all these photos with us! In a couple more weeks, we'll be celebrating 50 years.

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  7. Debbie, I loved you post about you anniversary and how you and your hubby fell in love. You are both very blessed. I have followed you for many years. Enjoy each time I visit seeing your beautiful home. Thanks for sharing. Karie

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  8. Aw, such a sweet story with a walk down memory lane. Happy Anniversary!!

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  9. Happy 40th anniversary! Your gallery wall is perfect by the way. I love a spot for memories. I have a small one in my hallway myself! Thanks for sharing at the Make Life Pretty Monday link party! Hope to see you next week!

    Kate | The Organized Dream

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  10. Happiest of Anniversaries. Wishing you 40 more.

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  11. Happy Anniversary, what a great life you two have had together, may you be blessed with many more to come!

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  12. Happy 40th Wedding Anniversary! We celebrated ours in April! It’s fun to walk through the memory lane like that. I love Wegman’s! When we visit our daughter in-laws parents in West Chester we go to one. I can’t believe you bought your home at the beginning of your marriage and stayed there all these years. I guess it was meant to be! We wanted to buy a home back then but we were living in Chicago and nothing appealed to us. We moved back to Michigan within 2 years and have been up north here all these years. Eventually my sister’s and I will sell the home I grew up in and I know it will be a bittersweet moment. Love the balloon and flowers Joe got you and the dinner looks like it was delicious. Congratulations again- Liz! 🥂🎉🍾

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  13. Happy 40th Anniversary! What a delight to see your "photo gallery." I always wanted a wall like that but we moved around too much so it just never got done. Pity! So many memories over the past forty years, Debbie. It is just lovely to read your story and I wish you and your Joe many more wonderful and memorable years together. The Lord bless you both! Hugs...Sandi

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  14. Happy 40th Anniversary. Wonderful photo wall and enjoyed the story of the pictures. Lovely wedding you and Joe had!
    Betsy

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  15. Happy 40th Anniversary dear friend and Joe ! You were both a very handsome couple and you two have created a beautiful family, all displayed on your lovely pictures up the stairs.
    May God bless you two always.
    Fabby

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  16. Hi Debbie, happy 40th anniversary. I enjoyed reading your story about how you met and loved looking at all the photos. Thanks for sharing this at Cooking and Crafting with J&J. Have a nice week
    Julie

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  17. What a wonderful post! Happy Anniversary, Debbie! A beautiful love story. So many sweet memories on your wall. Beautiful family. Have a great week.

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  18. Happy Anniversary! That is so awesome. Your post was so sweet. Nice to see all of your history. So glad you shared it with us.
    Hugs,
    Bev

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  19. Wow. The title of this post got my attention because I've been with my husband for 5 years now and we've been married for almost2. I pray to God we can get to 40 and many more. Your family is beautiful! Delia@ www.delia-in-a-nutshell.com

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  20. Happy 40th anniversary to the both of you Debbie. It's been such a pleasure taking a walk down memory lane with you in this blog post. You have a beautiful family and you can see all the love and that special bond you all have in each and everyone of the photos. Love the pics of the boys on Father Christmas's lap. Oh dear poor things. And your wedding photos too. You haven't really changed at all, except maybe, just maybe that twinkle in your eye has become more twinkly <3 I wish you all many, many more happy and loving years together

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  21. How very sweet! And what a milestone--congratulations!
    #embracingchangelinky

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  22. Happy 40th Anniversary to you and Joe. I just love your wedding photo . . . so young and so much ahead of you! I also enjoyed the photos of your boys and the way you guided us through the years with your photos. Such a wonderful post! Again, Congratulations! ~Cheryl

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  23. Oh Debbie
    I loved reading this ,what a life story about the gallery wall of pictures.
    You had a beautiful wedding and have had a good married life you and Joe
    Happy Anniversary

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  24. Congrats to you two Debbie! Hubby and I just celebrated our 46th. so hard to believe! I love your wall of photos. So fun looking back through all the years. Thanks for sharing with SYC.
    hugs,
    Jann

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  25. What a beautiful post, Debbie!! I enjoyed seeing all of your photos and especially your beautiful wedding photos. I noticed that I had similar eyeglasses as yours back in the 80's. I still like that style best! My hubby and I will celebrate 36 years of marriage this New Year's Day of 2019. You have inspired me to do a wedding post. Love your home decor, as well. Congratulations, again, to you and Joe!

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  26. Congratulations on 40 years! Wonderful photos--I had similar glasses too. The 80s, lol! Thanks for sharing at Vintage Charm!

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  27. Debbie, Oh how I have enjoyed your post with all the photographs! Congratulations and Happy Anniversary!! My husband and I have been married 38 years. Love your wedding pictures! Your husband's tux looks like my husband's did. I remember all those frills! How nice that you've never moved. Moving is not much fun and I hope not to do it ever again. Too much work!

    BTW, I'm your newest follower!

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  28. Happy Anniversary. Congratulations. What a sweet post. Thanks for linking to Keep in Touch.

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  29. Happy anniversary Debbie. It's amazing isn't it how fast all of that goes by. Thanks for sharing at Home Sweet Home.

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  30. Debbie, this is just the best. I love the way you embrace your life. You're such a good example. Happy anniversary!! 40 years is definitely something to celebrate.

    Thanks so much for joining the Grace at Home party at Imparting Grace. I'm featuring you this week!

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  31. Congratulations on 40 years, Debbie. Looking at peoples picture walls and photo albums is one of my favorite things. So many stories behind all the pictures.

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