Meet the 100-Year-Old Couple Celebrating Their 77th Wedding Anniversary

A couple from Illinois is racking up the milestones.

September 28 marks Vera and John Peterson’s 77^th wedding anniversary. But it doesn’t stop there! In just a few months the couple will celebrate John Peterson’s birthday as he turns 100 years old.

“I met this tall, handsome guy and you know, it took a while,” Vera Peterson, also 100, shared with ABC News. “It has been wonderful. I’m not saying that everything was all roses. There was a few thorns as always, and I think everyone has that. It can’t be perfect, but we have to have give and take.”

Together the couple has seven children, 18 grandchildren, 34 great-grandchildren, and three great, great-grandchildren.

The couple’s oldest son Randall Peterson, 76, shared with ABC News that “his father was a farmer most of his life before becoming a carpenter,” while his mother “was a stay-at-home mom until her children were grown up. She later worked at a nursing home for 20 years.”

“It’s amazing feat, especially this day and age,” Randall Peterson said. “Mom’s 100 and Dad’s going to be 100 in March, which is also amazing. They have their own sense of humor, which we enjoy.”

John and Vera’s granddaughter Pam shared that her grandparents are “genuine people with a spiritual connection.”

“They care for each other from the bottom of their hearts,” she said. “They live and breathe each other, so I think that has kept them going. They are very caring, loving and giving.”

The couple plans on having a low-key dinner with their family to celebrate the milestone.

So, what’s the secret to 77 years of marriage?

John Peterson praises his classic saying of, “Yes dear!”