Our 1st Annivesary

Our anniversary was August 25, however, the great surprise came on August 23. This is the account of that wonderful surprise...

On August 23 Josh and I had planned to go out for dinner in celebration of our first anniversary. During the day Josh had softball and afterwards we relaxed at home watching TV, eating lunch and reading.

Around 2:00 I was reading a book and Josh had been in the other room on the computer (so I thought!) Josh came into the living room and told me that he had received a maintenance call to fix a toilet. He was on call that weekend and it was very normal for him to get a call like this. So he was off.

Around 2:25, while I continued to read, Josh called me and said that he was going to have to make a run to Home Depot to get a part for the broken toilet. This was also something that he might have to do for a maintenance call. So I didn't think much of it and expected him back in 20-30 minutes.

Around 3:00 I began getting ready to go out for dinner. I wanted to dress up a little bit for the occasion and our plan was to leave by 4:15. As I was getting ready I couldn't find my deodorant. I had used it earlier that morning and I sure thought that I had left it on the counter on my side of the sink.

Around 3:40 Josh was back home and we were both getting ready to go out to dinner. I asked Josh if he had seen my deodorant. He asked if I had put it in the closet, which was a weird questions because I never put it in the closet. He proceeded to shut the bathroom door (because you can't get into the closet otherwise) and he pulled my deodorant out of the closet. He told me that he had put it away earlier.

Around 4:15 we headed out to Carabba's for dinner. The food was delicious and we enjoyed out time there. Josh had been telling me that we were also going to an old fashioned ice cream shop similar to one that we had visited in Florida when I spring break one year. That ice cream shop was in a hotel, and apparently the shop were were heading to after dinner was in a hotel as well.

Around 5:30 we pulled into the McDonald's headquarters in Oakbrook. IT WAS BEAUTIFUL! There were ponds, bridges and lots of trees. It didn't feel like we were only a few miles from home (with hotels, office buildings, the mall, other stores and restaurants). As we parked and walked up the stairs to "The Lodge" we saw two weddings going on. It was then that I asked Josh when he found out where this property and the ice cream shop were located. I figured it out that he had stopped by earlier in the day when he was out for awhile picking up a part for the broken toilet...so I thought.

When we walked into the hotel we started down a hall of hotel rooms, which still didn't seem out of the ordinary because when we visited the ice cream shop in Florida we walked through some halls of rooms. Josh then stopped in front of one of the rooms and said, "we're here."

I was sort of taken back, and yet still wondering in my mind why an ice cream shop was behind a door that looked like it was to a hotel room. Josh pulled a key out of his pocket and opened the door. I saw a dozen roses on the dresser with some beverages, snacks and food for breakfast. I also saw his black duffel bag on the floor. However, it was still not sinking in. Until finally, as I stood with my mouth wide open, Josh had to say, "we are staying here."

I WAS SO SURPRISED! I had not idea that he was planning any of this. Apparently he had been planning it since the beginning of the month. I love that I had no clue because I love surprises. The whole day began to make since. While I was reading Josh was packing out clothes and bathroom items in his duffel bag. This was where my original container of deodorant was located. The one he took out of the closet was brand new. The so called maintenance call to fix the toilet was just a decoy so that Josh could go check into our room and pick up the food and flowers.

It was so nice to feel like we had gotten away. We walked around the headquarters property and I took some pictures. It was very beautiful and serene. Josh really made our 1st Anniversary something special and I will remember his hard work in planning for a very long time.