This is where it all started. Smile Coogens bar in Chicago, circa 1988.

Steve and I met through our mutual friend - Lori Moncada Amelio. We met at the bar on the weekends and Steve's job was to watch our purses while we danced and to ward off the unwanted advances.

Lori was the one who kept us together after we outgrew the bar scene. She had countless bbq's, holiday parties and birthdays.

Then came our weddings, kids, life.

In 1997 Carol and her family moved to Indiana. We still kept in touch via xmas cards for a number of years. Then life got even busier.

Fast forward to January of 2022. The wonders of Facebook put us back in touch. We followed each others' stories and began to reconnect.

It was when she posted some pics from her son's wedding that caught my eye. I reached out via messenger with a 'how you doin' and that started this new and totally awesome journey. FRIENDS followers will understand the opening line.

I drove out to Valparaiso for our first date. We had a lot to catch up on, and it was sooo comfortable and relaxed. It seemed that no time has passed (other than the gray in my beard).

We started trading off weekends visiting each other. Now we have the fun of purging our separate houses and buying a house to call our own ❤️