Early Celebration

We have had the most wonderful day today - such a contrast to yesterday:-)  

We were invited for "a light lunch" with my best friend L and her husband in Dunkeld to celebrate our Golden Wedding Anniversary a day early (as we have other plans for tomorrow!), but when we arrived the surprises just kept on coming.

First was this beautiful fruit cake (made by L), with special ribbon and candles.  Then there was a knock at the door and in walked S., the third member of our old school trio with her husband, almost hidden by a beautiful bunch of golden flowers and a rose bush called "Golden Wedding" plus a bottle of Prosecco.  They live in the Borders and I haven't seen her for ages, so it was such a delight to see her again.

We then sat down to that "little light lunch" (!!!), comprising a delicious boeuf bourguignon with mashed potatoes and vegetables, followed by her signature dessert, a hazelnut shortbread with a spicy apple filling, plus a fresh fruit salad all washed down with a nice red wine for those who could drink (alas not me due to the meds I'm on!)

A short interval to digest this and catch up on everyone's news, then it was time to cut the cake and enjoy a slice with our coffee.  A further lovely surprise followed in the form of a gift from L & A of a certificate to say an acre of Schiehallion (my only Munro) had been "adopted" in our names for a year!  This will help the John Muir Trust to continue their protection and management of the mountain for all to enjoy in the future.  How fantastic is that?

An hour or so later, we were pressed to have a delicious fruit scone (warm from the Aga) with home made jam and cream and more coffee, so that we wouldn't be hungry on the way home!

The whole surprise couldn't have been more perfect and we can't thank them all enough for the time and effort they put in to making this such a special celebration for us.  Both L. and S. were at our wedding all these years ago (we met when we were 12!), so it was wonderful to be together again for this day.

Some friends are too precious for words and I love them to bits:-)