Good News, Bad News (part one).

The last time I set down to write we were getting ready to celebrate our first wedding anniversary with a little trip to St. Genevieve, Missouri. That was over a month ago, yet in some ways it seems as if it was a lifetime ago.

I started out to write this in the format of one of those old comedy routines that followed the “That’s good. No, that’s bad” format but soon realized that it would go on for a dozen pages. So I decided to just give you the “Good News” and the “Bad News” all mixed together the way it happened.

The good news is that we had a lazy, relaxing, and very enjoyable anniversary trip. St. Genevieve, Missouri is a short sixty miles south of St. Louis on the banks of the Mississippi river. The town is about 250 years old and was the first permanent civilized settlement in Missouri. It is also the only Original French Colonial Village left in the United States. A quant, laid back small town where all the modern comforts and conveniences are hidden behind the architectural charm of an old world village. Despite the constant rain and flooding in most of our area the weather even cooperated and let the sun shine. All in all it was a perfect place for two old romantics to stroll hand in hand enjoying the unique town, many interesting shops and each other.

We stayed in an old 1882 hotel that has been lovingly restored to its original beauty and converted into a comfortable B&B. Complete with period antiques, warm fireplaces, delicious food and very gracious host all within walking distance of everything of interest in town. This was our first stay at a bed and breakfast and the bad news was that we discovered that we are not the B&B types. We would have been more comfortable at a traditional motel. The really bad news was that my dear Frank came down with a small bug and had to spend a big chunk of one day in our lodgings.

On a lighter note, I will tell a funny that happened to us. In one of the shops we tried a sample of some very nice (and pricey) French lotion made from goat’s milk. Frank and I both liked the lotion, so we went back to the shop and purchased a bottle. The next day my back was itching, so my dear husband went to apply a liberal coat of the new lotion, when after a few minutes of rubbing he could not get the lotion to absorb into my skin we checked the bottle to discover (bad news) that we had been given the wrong bottle and he had just covered my back in body wash. It made for a fun time in the shower washing away all the soap.

After leaving St Gene, we spent a couple of days with one of Frank’s oldest friends who lived in a neighboring town. The good news was we had a pleasant visit but the bad news was that I forgot to pack our sonicare toothbrushes so we had to make a return trip several days later to retrieve them. But, that even turned into good news because we stumbled on a shop that was having a fantastic sale on patio furniture, so the trip actually more than paid for itself.

I am going to continue the rest of the story in a part 2 that I hope to have posted in a day or so.

You will not believe what happened to me next.