Table for Nine

On March 18, 2012... Moe-Joe & Dad-Oh celebrated their 40th Wedding Anniversary! To celebrate such a monumental occasion, we (Mandi, Jason, Jei and I) had decided to all go in together and give them a two week Mediterranean cruise in late spring. But much to our surprise and disappointment... we found out that they had stolen our idea and actually bought their own tickets for that very same cruise before we even had the chance to do it for them! So then we went to plan B... which was obviously to get our own tickets and surprise them on the cruise ship as it left port in Barcelona!

But then we were really disappointed when we realized that Jei had a cake order for that week, Mandi had a city hall meeting, Jason had a parent/teacher conference, and I had some important training to do at work that I just couldn't miss. So with all of us super busy during the time of the cruise, we knew plan B just wasn't going to work! But with a little brainstorming and some creative thinking, we finally came up with plan C... a brilliant fail safe way to celebrate our parents 40th Anniversary! And although it had absolutely nothing to do with a cruise of any kind, we made sure it was just as thoughtful and special!

So... what was plan C you ask? Well how about some take-out Chinese food on some rented table & chairs in the backyard! Now I know what you're thinking, "Wow, they must really hate their parents!" Now I know it sounds ghetto, cheap and maybe even a little 'Whiskey Tango' (White Trash!)... but I doubt you'll feel the same way by the end of this post!

So what meant more to Moe-Joe & Dad-Oh than any cruise could ever do, was that their children and their families were with them together. It didn't much matter where... all they really cared about was being with all of us and having a good time. And since we were all going to be together here in Southern California for Spring Break, we knew that was going to be the perfect time to celebrate! So knowing that, we came up with this brilliant idea to surprise Moe-Joe & Dad-Oh one night with a very classy, elegant and thoughtful dinner. But the surprise really wasn't about the dinner that night... but rather where the dinner was!

So the plan was for me and Allen Jess to get Moe-Joe & Dad-Oh out of the house (thinking we were all going to go out for dinner!)... while the rest of the crew setup and positioned the easy-up canopy, plugged in all the lights, set up the rented table, chairs, plates, silverware, all the decorations, hung the poster-sized wedding picture of Moe-Joe & Dad-Oh we had made, and last but certainly not least... topped it all off with one of Jei's amazing cakes in the center of the table! All we needed next was a little decent acting  and a little luck, as we all held our breathes to see if this big surprise was going to work!   

And much to our relief...

the surprise worked to perfection!!!

Needless to say, they were both completely thrilled with what we had come up with... and unless they were just going/playing along with it, they were thoroughly surprised! And if they were playing along, then they deserve a couple of Academy Awards!

That evening the nine of us sat around the beautifully decorated table in our backyard, ate our favorite take-out Chinese food, and enjoyed each other's company.

After slamming down a couple of servings of orange chicken and fried rice, Allen Jess was still hungry! Luckily he had Hampton there to feed him a little dessert!

"Don't worry guys... I got this!"

With a full belly, all his family around, and the excitement of the occasion, Allen Jess stole the spotlight as he explained what exactly he was thankful for that night!

Before we knew it, it was time to dig into that gorgeous cake!

Naturally, the two love-birds did the honors of cutting the cake... and showed us that two glasses of wine really is enough!

Mmmmmm... Red Velvet Cake!!!

YUM!

No cake for Allen... but with such good food, spirits, and company, it was hard not to be smiling that night!

Our surprise anniversary celebration couldn't have gone any better! The plan worked, the setup looked amazing, the weather was fantastic, and all the food and drinks were great! And although none of us have known Moe-Joe & Dad-Oh for 40 years... we've known them long enough to know that as long as we're all together, Chinese takeout in the backyard will work just fine!

Congratulations Moe-Joe & Dad-Oh...

and thank you for setting such a wonderful example to both your children and your grandchildren, and for showing us that 40 years together really is obtainable!