Betty's Cafe

So this is it - Luke's special birthday surprise. Betty's Cafe was a little restaurant in South Saint Paul, where Luke and I grew up. The owner, Betty, was apparently quite a character. Sometimes she made you what she wanted to make you, not necessarily what you ordered, and you would eat it! Luke grew up near Betty's and often went there for breakfast before school with his dad. He has many good memories of Betty's. After Betty died nobody took over the business and the place shut down. Somehow my mother-in-law knew that everything in Betty's went to one particular family in South Saint Paul once it closed down. This included a photograph of Betty's Cafe that was framed and hanging in the restaurant. Luke remembered that photo very well and always said that he'd love to have it. After more than a month of detective work, planning and persistence I managed to track down the person who had the photo and convince them to let me scan it so that I could make a print (and I didn't even know them before I started on this mission). Then I had it custom framed and shipped it to Iraq for Luke's golden birthday present. I was able to watch him open it through Skype (online web cam). Best gift ever! :)