The wedding we attended in my previous post was barely an hour away from the very first house we ever owned so we had to take a small detour and drive by. But first we stopped at our favorite Chinese restaurant. The Plum Garden brings back such fond memories for us. Going out to eat was big deal back then! Our Christmas plans our first year of marriage were not traditional and we ended up eating dinner at Plum Garden. They gave each of the patrons that night a little box of tea wrapped in a gold box. It is a memory I won't ever forget. To this day we still eat Chinese food on Christmas Eve. The girls love our tradition too. I hope they do the same thing with their own families. 

We were so happy to see Plum Garden is still in business. They have great food. It is in McHenry, Illinois. 

We sat at that table many times. 

This is our first house. The landscaping is just beautiful now and the tree we planted is enormous! The house was the same color when we lived there. Not much has changed!! 

Those bushes in the front hide a large water pump. When we owned the house we had a raised flower  bed surrounding the pump. 

We were so happy to see the house after so many years. We bought the house on July 1, 1987 and to see it in such good shape made us even happier. We visited our very first home (of 6 houses) on August 27 and we celebrated our 30th anniversary on September 5. ❤️

Last weekend we went to a lovely and very personal wedding. Each detail was planned specifically for the bride and groom. We had so much fun celebrating the future of Dave and Jena. The wedding was in a town in Wisconsin that calls itself the Chocolate City. Bob has been to this town many times because they are the home of a huge Nestle chocolate factory. He use to make the wrappers for the candy bars they produce. The entire town smells like a big cup of hot chocolate. It was heavenly!!!

Bob, Pam, Bill and Mike

The guys have been friends since elementary school which means roughly 50 years of friendship!!! Pam is Bill's wife. 

It was a great party. We will be with Pam and Bill (and the guy in the back) for the next two weekends. Pictures will be posted as the events unfold. 

This is Bob dancing!

Mike, Liz (Mike's wife) me and Bob

Bill eating ice cream. No cake at this party. The bride and groom love ice cream!

Bob and his 5th grade teacher. He had a crush on her when he was a little guy. She is a great lady and so fun to be around. 

We had a great time!

Maria, Leah and Jenn sent me these beautiful roses for my birthday. I hope this is the beginning of a wonderful tradition.