Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond Shares Throwback Wedding Photos to Mark 28th Anniversary with Husband Ladd

Ree Drummond is celebrating nearly three decades of marriage with her husband, Ladd Drummond !

On Sunday, Sept. 22, the Pioneer Woman star, 55, and her longtime love rang in 28 years since tying the knot — and Ree shared a sweet tribute to mark the milestone on Instagram.

The culinary blogger filled her post with photos of herself and the cattle rancher throughout the decades, starting with some throwbacks of the couple at their wedding, flicks of their early days together and ending with recent pictures.

In the caption, she penned a message about how "grateful" she is to have found Ladd, with whom she shares five children : Alex, 27, Paige, 25, Bryce, 22, Jamar, 21, and Todd, 20.

"28 years ," she began. "If you make it to the last photo, you'll see a couple of people who are... okay, yes, slightly exhausted but oh so grateful we found each other almost three decades ago."

She continued, "It has been an adventure, a roller coaster, a journey, an odyssey and a blast. Not to mention fast! How can it be our 28th anniversary when we're only 32? I love you, Ladd! And the kids. ."

Then, she concluded her message with a "what if," adding: "OMG, what if we hadn't met?"

Thankfully for the couple, they did meet — at a dive bar, as the blogger previously revealed.

Before a cross-country move, Ree returned back home for a few months to Bartlesville, Olka., around Christmas time, and she linked up with some of her childhood friends for a night out at a local dive bar. That's where she first spotted her now-rancher beau from across the bar.

It was his "big and strong" hands that first caught Ree's attention, she told The Pioneer Woman website in 2021. And, after the pair got to talking, she felt an instant connection.

Recalling the early days of their love in 2017, Ree told PEOPLE, "He was just completely different from all the boys I'd been crazy about."

"I don't mean to make it sound like Maria and Tony in West Side Story," she added. "But I was just sort of like, 'Oh boy!' My knees were weak."

Ree has previously credited faith as the key to her and Ladd's longtime love and prosperous marriage — but also acknowledged that it isn't a catch-all, just what works for them.

"This isn't the answer for everybody, but we go to church together every Sunday," she told PEOPLE in an exclusive cover story in 2017. "It's something that we do no matter what comes up. No matter how tired we are."