Last Friday, Nigel and I celebrated 50 years of being together. We went on our first date May 26, 1973! I know, I know…I was only 1 or so! I’ve told our story before (here). Yes, I was young, but when you know, you know, right? I had been reminding him of the occasion for several weeks. But, did he take the hint and buy me a gift…nope, nada, zilch!
Our first date…
I was really worried about this first date. I hadn’t thought to ask where we were going or what I should wear. I was young and naive! I don’t think I even knew we would be going on a double date. The other couple had just gotten married the week before. The guy was my best friend’s brother and was Nigel’s best friend. I didn’t even know his wife at all! Talk about awkward! I had known this guy my entire life and never thought I’d be double dating with him and his wife!
What to wear…
But, I had this really cute outfit so that’s what I wore. In my hometown, there were several clothing or department stores. Two of them specialized in women’s clothing. One of them went the extra mile and stocked young women’s clothing. Do any of y’all remember Bobbie Brooks? Most of you probably just know of this from the John Mellencamp song, “Jack and Diane,” right? Not only do I remember Bobbie Brooks, I wore Bobbie Brooks! And, our small town even had a Tastee Freeze (bonus points if you get the reference! But, I digress!
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/703756172232091/sent/?invite_code=2a37131f79a046af82b3ee45a26d06b8&sender=214484138411950507&sfo=1The outfit…
This photo is the closest I could find of the pants I wore. They were a linen blend, aqua and bell bottoms! They were also very high waisted. I wore them with a scoop neck beige linen blend lightweight short sleeve sweater (talk about a lot of descriptors). Amazingly, I can’t remember what shoes I wore, but I definitely remember my earrings. I’d gotten my ears pierced a couple of years before, and my mom bought me a pair of gold hoops. These were not your ordinary hoops. They were the size of an earring post all the way around and connected by pushing the end into a joiner of some kind. I loved those earrings and wore them all the time. After a while, they got misshapen, and the end would pop out unexpectedly. I would hear a loud “Boing,” but, of course, no one else could.
The date…
So, there I was in my Bobbie Brooks finery, awaiting my first date with the man of my dreams (visit the post mentioned above to find out more on that), and hoping I looked nice. R and C, along with Nigel, pulled in the driveway in an old Ford station wagon. Now, a couple of things I neglected to mention were: R’s dad was a Ford car salesman; R was cheap, cheap, cheap; the station wagon was cheap, cheap, cheap! Imagine my shock when I realized I was going on a first date, not only with my best friend’s brother and his brand new wife, but I was going in an old station wagon! Oh, my friends, it gets better! All three of them had jeans on and probably plaid button downs as that was the style back then. And, there I was in my Bobbie Brooks bell bottoms and best long descriptor sweater! We.Went.To.The.Dirt.Track.Races! You read that right. For our first date, Nigel took me to the races! I don’t know if he realized it at the time, but I’d been to those races many, many times with my bff. Her dad was a car guy and loved the races so I’d go along with her. I can still remember sitting on the hill on a blanket and watching the dust rise from the cars.
Just a little more…
This really doesn’t relate to the date other than it’s where we went. But, I just found this site, and oh, my gosh, does it bring back memories. If you scroll to the photo of the back of the bleachers with the ice machine showing, just beyond that would have been the hill where we would sit. Nigel and I were just talking about whether or not there were concessions and where the stand was. I will have to show him this site!
My outfit…
Nigel and I have been married almost 47 years…he’d better start saving now for that 50th anniversary! On the date of our 50th anniversary first date, we went to Cooper’s Hawk, a local restaurant and winery. Neither Nigel nor I drink wine, but our server brought us a few different kinds of wine to sample. She was outstanding and very personable. I wore this beautiful floral Cordial Porch Dress and my Jane Cropped Sweater from April Cornell. I’ve had my eye on this dress for a long time but wasn’t sure if the colors would suit me. Many times, when you receive your order from April, you’ll find a small market bag included. In one of my earlier orders, I received a bag made from the fabric of the dress! I was thrilled because now I knew it contained colors I could wear! I felt very special in this outfit. I have to tell you this little cropped sweater is amazing! It’s perfect for when you need just a little something to guard against the chill. And, because it’s cropped, it doesn’t cover up a lot of your dress!
The Lewk!
I considered wearing a pair of my Cobb Hill Aubreys, but I wanted to give these Birkenstocks some more wear time. This is my first pair of Birks, and the leather is just a titch hard. They will be fine once I’ve worn them more. I decided to go with green jewelry because why not? All of these pieces are prasiolite which is a green amethyst. They are all from eBay and very old.
Wrap it up, Marsha!
So, there you have it…my first date with Nigel, our 50th anniversary celebration, and a history lesson on Bobbie Brooks! We have had some tough times, but the good times far outweigh those. We both lost our parents and leaned on each other to weather those times. It’s weird to think about how old we are, comparatively speaking, because I honestly feel like I’m still a teenager most days. So, can we talk? What was your first date like with your significant other? Did you overdress or underdress or dress just right? Do you remember Bobbie Brooks? Please leave a comment or two, and we can talk! I promise to respond as quickly as possible!
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10 on the 10th…
I haven’t forgotten. I’ve just been busy. I will try to get a post together and out tomorrow! But, don’t hold me to that!
Where you can find me:
Linking up with Nancy’s Fashion Style, Fine-Whatever, Is This Mutton, Shelbee on the Edge, Chez Mireile, The Grey Brunette, and Away from the Blue. I also link up with This Blonde’s Shopping Bag, Doused in Pink, I do deClaire, Mummabstylish, and Style Splash. Please check out these wonderful ladies and their blogs! I also am a co-host for Ageless Style on the third Thursday of the month and Songful Style on the last Monday of the month. I co-host Traffic Jam Weekend with Michelle every Thursday. I also host Final Fridays on the last Friday of the month as well as 10 on the 10th on the 10th of the month! I do hope you’ll check out all of these blogs and link parties!
You are such a good storyteller Marsha. I can see in my mind’s eye what you were wearing all those years ago! Now I cannot get the song out of my head but boy do I remember Bobbie Brooks and yes, I got the bonus points for the Tastee Freeze reference too!
I think you chose such a pretty outfit to celebrate your special occasion, the cropped cardigan is perfect and I think you’ll wear it with so much!
Thanks for such a fun read!
?Kellyann
Thanks, Kellyann! My students always took advantage of my storytelling, too! But, I liked to make my lessons more like a story than a lecture kind of thing. I guess you can’t take the teacher out of the blogger!
I love that you remember Bobbie Brooks. Apparently, you can buy plus size Bobbie Brooks at Dollar General! I remember it being on the more expensive side of clothing in our little town. Did you have a Tastee Freeze, or were they just in Indiana (John Mellencamp is a Hoosier)?
I love this dress, and the cardigan was the perfect cover up!
What a fun memory! I couldn’t share most of my first date with Dan. We met on a Facebook group. He lived in CA and I was in KS. We chatted A LOT before we met. Thankfully, being an American Airlines pilot, it was no problem for him to hop on a plane and fly to see me for free. So by the time that happened…. We spent most of that 4 days in bed. And the rest is history.
Your dress is so springy. I love it! And I’m going to have to try a cropped sweater. It is so flattering on you.
Hahahaha!!!!! Michelle, I love it! Someday, we are going to sit down, have a nice drink of one kind or another, and just talk and talk and talk! I want to hear more about you and Dan…but we can leave those four days alone…I get the gist of them!
Thanks! I really love this dress, and the cardigan is perfect for my short body!
After all that chatting, no doubt you needed those 4 days of sleep… 😀
Hahahaha!!!!
Oh but isn’t it better to be overdressed that under? I’ll bet the newly wed wife was jealous of your look! Did you keep your clothes clean on that first date? Congratulations on knowing each other 50 years!
Thanks, Nancy! I agree it’s better to be overdressed. You can almost always do something to make the look a little more casual. I doubt she was jealous…after all, she had just been a bride! Yes, my clothes stayed clean because we were far enough away from the dust from the track.
Love hearing about these fun memories; you took me right back with you! I would rather be over dressed than under dressed! Bobbi Brooks sounds familiar, but I don’t think I ever wore it. The outfit you wore to your anniversary date is so pretty!
Jill – Doused in Pink
Thank you so much, Jill! It’s funny how I can recall, with such detail, something that happened 50 years ago, but I can’t remember what day of the week it is! I really love this dress; the print is gorgeous!
I always love reading your stories Marsha. It’s amazing what you remember too. I can’t remember half of that from our first date.
Love the dress and the cropped sweaters are so perfect with the longer skirts.
XOOX
Jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.com
Thanks, Jodie! My students always knew they could count on me for a story of some kind! We would be talking about weather (or anything), and I’d go off on a tangent about Henry VIII! But, I always brought it back to the lesson at hand!
I can remember everything except for my shoes…that is so weird to me! I probably wore clogs because those pants were long. And, I love this sweater so much I ordered it in blue!
Congratulations on your golden wedding anniversary! It’s very unlikely we will get to that, I would be 100 and he would be 105. I love these soft colors on you, the light green and cream. Looking forward to th 10/10 reveal!
Thanks, Gail, but this was the 50th anniversary of our first date. We still have three more years until the golden wedding anniversary. I’m crossing my fingers we make it!
Gorgeous dress and great colors on you. Those short cardigans you’re wearing lately are perfect. Let’s hope Nigel is tuned in that for the 50th wedding anniversary, a gift really is necessary! 😀
Thanks, Sally! It’s the same cardigan! It is actually just the perfect length, but I find myself trying to pull it down because it just seems like it should be longer!
Mike is good about gifts…obviously…but, what usually happens is he takes me shopping, and I pick it out. Or, I pick out 3-4 things and he goes from there!
What a sweet memory! My hubby and I started dating in high school and it’s fun to retell the stories to our kids together!
Thanks, Laura! Were you in the same class? I bet your girls do love to hear your stories!
Happy half century to you and Nigel! What a fun post and gorgeous date outfit, too! I have to ask…did he put his hand between your knees outside the Tastee Freeze?! I freaking love that you wore Bobbie Brooks on your first date!
Shelbee
Hahaha!!! No, he did not! You know, I don’t think we ever even went to the Tastee Freeze. It may have closed down by the time we were dating. I loved those pants. I had another pair of black and white plaid seersucker Bobbie Brooks pants. I probably had many more, but those are the two I remember.
Thanks, Shelbee!
Aww I love this post so much! First , your outfit is adorable. And those Bobbie Brooks pants make me think of garden fairies. So you were like a little garden fairy flitting about the races!
Our first date… hmm. We were just little 17 year olds, and I honestly don’t remember if our first date was watching Jurassic Park at the movie theater (the OG Jurassic Park even!) or when we really just walked around our city and had bagels at the park. Neither were super exciting, I guess, as far as story telling goes.
Thanks, Erin! I probably wouldn’t have remembered what I wore all those years ago if we hadn’t gone to a dirt track! Your first date(s) sound like just right for 17 year olds. That Jurassic Park movie was scary for the times…I remember jumping quite often!
That’s funny! I remember falling on my face on our 2nd date, we went to the mall and I slipped! First date was at Johnny Rockets and it was weird because my hubby’s mannerisms and southern accent reminded me of his uncle which I had know for years.
http://www.chezmireillefashiontravelmom.com
Oops! Well, at least that made it memorable! That’s interesting you knew his uncle before him. I’d love to hear how you met!
I can tell I am going to get an education if I hang around you. Pretty sure I wore someone else’ clothes on my first date with the guy who became my husband (whom I call The Engineer). In nurses res we always swapped clothes so unless there was a picture one never remembered what we wore. Even looking at pictures we sometimes forget who owned what! I have no idea who Bobby Brooks is/was. I grew up on a farm in the middle of the Canadian prairies. We wore jeans. End of story!
Bernie
Bernie, you are reminding me of the characters I’m reading about in a book right now. The main character has just realized she and the other women in the boarding house always wore each others’ clothes. And, hers were the boring, workaday clothes.
I really hope you stick around! I love to talk/write and teach! My husband was an electrical engineer. I bet you have some wonderful stories, though, of growing up on the Canadian prairies. Don’t let me fool you! I wore jeans a lot then and still do! I can still remember when we couldn’t wear pants of any kind to school. We could bring a pair for outdoor recess during the winter, but we had to take them off when recess was over!
Thanks, Bernie, for visiting!
Happy Anniversary Marsha! What a wonderful story about your first date. My first date with my husband Michael was the best date I ever had. :). Love the dress and how it reminds you of what you wore.
https://www.kathrineeldridge.com
Thanks so much, Kathrine! Oh, have you written about your first date? I’d love to hear about it! I really do love this dress and plan to wear it often.
Great story on your first date and happy 50th anniversary. May you have many more good ones to come.
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