The One with our Fourth

Thursday was the 4th Anniversary of the day I married this guy--

In celebration of our marriage (you see, we love each other to infinity and beyond, we laugh together a whole lot, and sharing conversation is our favorite pastime), we planned a stupendous getaway that was meant to fit in our favorite things. 

My Uncle Scott generously offered us a set of his company's tickets to the Cleveland Indians game (they just so happened to be playing the Detroit Tigers...our team...which was the hidden agenda in attending this particular game.) They were fantastic seats--just 20 rows back from home plate! 

Besides enjoying the game, the energetic environment, and the company of my mom and grams, we scored FREE PARKING in downtown Cleveland. Unheard of! 

After the game was over (it was a rather short game...........and we lost.....), we hit the road and headed to Sandusky, Ohio. I had discovered Camp Sandusky on the interwebs and booked us a two night stay. Decent prices, 10 minutes from Cedar Point, lovely wooded sites, accommodating bath houses--we would totally recommend staying here if you're planning a Cedar Point trip. 

We set up our tent and our chairs and our air mattress by 5pm and at 6:00 we opted for a trip to the local legend of an ice cream parlor--Toft's. This ice cream shop serves hard scoop ice cream that they churn themselves with the milk that comes from the factory that's attached to the parlor. Yeah, it's that fresh. With over 30 flavors to choose from, we had our work cut out for us.  

We both got a "small" for $3.00 each--four giant scoops. (We were glad they told us that the large was an entire half gallon of ice cream. That's a bit insane. I have NO IDEA how they fit that on a cone.) And so, we indulged in our ice cream-before-dinner. mmmmmm.

That night, we started a fire, then roasted brats and simultaneously played 3 games of Rummy--it was a beautiful thing. 

The weather cooled down for a lovely night's sleep in a quiet park--the Thursday night calm before the Memorial Day storm. :) We slept in and took our time getting ready for the day. (I tried really hard to sleep in, but couldn't make it past 7:45. I am such an old person.) 

We headed for Cedar Point at 9:45 and walked in the gates just as they opened at 10am. Perfect! (The first time we've ever had a leisurely (late) morning leading up to a day at CP. 

(BTW, if you don't know what Cedar Point is or you've never been, you are seriously missing out. It is by far THE BEST amusement park in the World. Quite literally. 

Cedar Point has also received the Golden Ticket Award for "Best Amusement Park in the World" from Amusement Today for the past fourteen years.

If you like roller coasters, you MUST go. We got our tickets for $40 through AAA, which is the same price as the local small-scale park.) 

We spent the next many hours sweating like crazy (it was about 90 degrees!), waiting in a few lines and buzzing through others, screaming and laughing at the top of our lungs, and snacking on a backpack full of goodies (avoiding park priced foods.) I was intensely impressed that my hair style--two french-braided pigtails (Kevin's idea) with loads of hairspray--kept perfectly through coaster after coaster. Astounding! :)

The Sky Hawk was one of our favorite thrills. It was a new ride, but the line was never more than 15 minutes long, and the excitement was just as high as most coasters. The ride was smooth and high (200+ feet) and fast (70+ mph). That's a win-win-win in my book. 

Oh, and this is our exaggerated thrill-seeking expressions. 

After making our rounds to our favorite coasters (some more than once), and never really stopping for a break, we were tired out by 5:00. (This probably has something to do with our "oldness," but we're ok with that.) We headed to Olive Garden for our fancy pants anniversary date. Equipped with the small remains of a gift card, we opted to splurge (for us) and order fountain drinks PLUS dessert! YUM. This triple chocolate strata was rich and velvety and delicious. 

As we headed back to our campsite at 6:15, we decided--completely on a whim (which had been our trip's theme)--to pack up camp and head to my parents' house. And so we did. By 7:00 we were loaded (and we totally folded our tent up perfectly on the FIRST TRY--record-setting!) and showered and on the road. We surprised Mom and Dad with our 9pm arrival, but had a great night talking with them. This morning we had another leisurely routine and even had time for seeing Gramma Mary, visiting my beloved Pastor Jeff & Sue, and eating a Steak and Shake lunch with Mom, Dad, Grams, and Chuck. 

We made it home by 4:20pm, unpacked, started laundry, went for a walk with my bff, had ice cream for dinner (again), and got back to the church for worship practice at 6:30. 

It sounds crazy, but it was perfect. 

I love you, Kevin. Thanks for spending a wonderful "weekend" of celebration with me.