It doesn’t seem possible, but my husband and I celebrated our 43rd wedding anniversary this past weekend. Four decades, four wonderful children, and now four years in our new city of Wichita. Ken surprised me with a fun date night that showed off much of the best this town has to offer.
We drove downtown and parked at the beautiful Century II concert hall and convention center, then caught the trolley to Old Town in the heart of the city. 
The weather was perfect, and we had the trolley all to ourselves early in the evening. It is free to ride, and the city doesn’t even allow tipping.
We discovered an app that shows all the QLine and other bus routes, so we’re ready for our next downtown outing.
Old Town Wichita is a beautiful place with brick streets, old architecture, lush landscaping, and cool shops and restaurants.
The first surprise was dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, Larkspur. We hadn’t eaten there for many years, but it was even better than we remembered.
Tiramisu, on the house, for our anniversary. What a treat!
Couldn’t love this man more. Marriage is sometimes hard work, and like Ken always says, “We’ve been married 41 wonderful years, and a couple of doozies.” But it’s so very worth it to have muddled through and now be enjoying the rewards of our labor. Ken’s grandparents almost made it to their 82nd anniversary so we’re just over halfway there! 😉
These pretty plantings and brick walls made a great backdrop for a spur-of-the-moment portrait. Ken always captures my best smiles.
But the real treat was yet to come! NEWSIES at Music Theatre Wichita! Ken had tickets to opening night! He totally surprised me!
Such a good show and so well done!
Have you ever had a chance to visit Wichita? If not, I hope you’ll give our city a try next time you’re driving across the U.S. (Or fly in via our gorgeous new Dwight D. Eisenhower National airport.) I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised. I know we are!
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Congratulations Deb and Ken. I wish you many more great years together.
Thanks, Lynn!
Happy Anniversary! 🙂
Thanks, Melissa. It WAS happy!
Congratulations! Glad you had a wonderful time. Your hubby had the best idea!
We just celebrated our 48th. My hubby wrote me a poem and framed it and hung it. I asked him to hang another smaller version in the living room. It is surrounded by little wooden Name plaques with all our names , ( ours and the kids). They have a scripture verse and the biblical definition of our names( mine means little one). Then another tiled plaque with 1 Corinthians 13 tops it all off!
Happy Anniversary and many more!
What an awesome anniversary gift, Paula! I love that idea! Your hubby sounds like a keeper!
Beautiful pictures! I just saw Newsies last night here in St. Louis! It was an amazing show. Happy anniversary!
How cool that it’s playing in St. Louis too! I’d love to see that production and compare notes!
I’ve never been to Wichita, but I love the look of the downtown area. Happy, happy anniversary!
Isn’t it great?! We love going there for the farmers market and the shops and restaurants. Wichita gets made fun of in movies and novels, but it really is a great town!
What a wonderful anniversary treat, Deb! And what an amazing legacy you and Ken are leaving your children. 43 years is tremendous! And Ken’s grandparents – WOW – nearly 82 years??? They must have been married at the cradle. 🙂 Such a beautiful testimony to what God can do in the lives of his people when they put in the work and lean on His strength. Congratulations on a wonderful milestone.
Thanks, Karen! We’ve been given a great legacy to pass down…both sets of my grandparents celebrated 55-60-plus years of marriage, Ken’s parents were married 40-plus years before his dad passed away, and my parents were married 62 years before my mom passed away. We’re inspired to keep that legacy going!
What wonderful pictures congratulations on your many years of marriage.
Thank you, Diana!
Happy Anniversary! Thank you for sharing your beautiful evening. We will be celebrating our 42nd Anniversary soon. We have never been to your city but I think we are missing out.
You have a standing invitation! It’s a great city! And happy anniversary to YOU!
Happy Anniversary! =)
Such great photos of Wichita! I live in Wichita and really enjoy all that it has to offer.
It’s a hidden treasure in many ways, isn’t it, Melissa!?
Yes, it is! =) Wichita has a lot of wonderful Restaurants and things to do!
Congrats, sweet friend, and happy anniversary. Here’s wishing you many more!
Thank you, dear friend!
Congratulations, Deb and Ken! Thanks for sharing your beautiful day.
We are in the midst of a cross country trip from Virginia Beach to Long Beach to visit our daughter and her family. We were in Long Beach to celebrate our anniversary of 52 years on August 8, so it was a special treat.
Wishing you many more wonderful years!
Thank you, Betty. Enjoy your trip! And congratulation on those 52 years! That’s quite an accomplishment! May the Lord bless you with many more!