It all started on August 3 with a Facebook friend request from my somewhat famous garden gnome.  I can't figure out how to pull up what it said, but it was something to the effect that he had decided to take a holiday and not to worry about him while he was gone.  A day or so later we received this letter in the mail...

We fully expected for this to be a ransom demand, but when we opened it, this is what it said:

So... Needless to say, this became a big mystery around the neighborhood and we've all had lots of fun speculating about who "Gnomey's" traveling companion might be.  We were thinking about who we haven't heard from lately, analyzing the handwriting on the card, the words used on Facebook... everything!  Today, the mystery was finally solved.  But first... for all you non-facebookers, here's a little recap of his journeys.  The captions are from Gnomey's Facebook page.

Gnomey 8/02: "After a long day of travel on Friday, finally kicking off the boots for some relaxation in Las Vegas! The traffic to Sea-Tac was terrible!"

Gnomey 8/02: "Not bad! The Monte Carlo has pretty nice rooms, but it's sure not as nice as Mandalay Bay."

Gnomey 8/02: "Shopping at the Forum Shops at Caesars."

Gnomey 8/02: "Yikes, it's 105F in Vegas today and was 98F when I landed last night. I'm missing the cool, clean air of the Garden!"

Gnomey 8/04: "Eating at the Daily Grill on Rosecranz in L.A. tonight. I hope they have something good to eat..."

Gnomey 8/04: "Dinner in Manhattan Beach at my favorite place, The Daily Grill. The crab-stuffed trout was fabulous!"

Gnomey 8/04: "Arnold's feet are a little too big for me!"

Gnomey 8/04: "I had to ask a kind passerby to give me a boost for this picture!"

Gnomey 8/05: "Having dinner on Critter Country tonight!"

Gnomey 8/05: "Mickey Mouse was holding me but my camera lost the picture!!! :-( oh no the humanity!!!"

Gnomey 8/05: "I stood in line all over again and got the money shot with Mickey!"

Gnomey 8/05: "Mickey autographed my behind!!!"

Phillip 8/06: "good morning! hope you're having fun wherever you are! great pic w/ mickey :)"

Katie 8/06: "Lookin' good Gnomey! Wish we were all with you."

Gnomey 8/06: "Me dipping my toes in the Pacific near San Luis Obispo, CA."

Gnomey 8/06: "Yikes!!! The water is freezing!"

Gnomey 8/06: "The view along the Pacific Coast Highway was out of this world!"

Phillip 8/07: "oh wow! gnomey, I wish you'd have invited us on this trip :) looks beautiful and sounds like you're having great fun... making your way back up north possibly?!"

Gnomey 8/07: "Having lunch at Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco."

Gnomey 8/07: "I wonder how many gnomes it took to build the Golden Gate Bridge?"

Gnomey 8/07: "San Francisco wouldn't come out of her fog blanket today."

Gnomey 8/08: "Gnomey is on the road today, which way I'm headed only I know ;-)."

Gnomey 8/09: "Hitchin' a ride on a freight train Hobo-style!"

Gnomey 8/09: "The weather up here at Mt St Helens reminds me of the Garden."

Gnomey 8/09: "I made a new friend! Remember, only YOU can prevent forest fires."

Gnomey 8/09: "Look! I found a rainbow near Mt. St. Helens!"

Gnomey 8/10: "Watching the Mariners lose.... again!"

So... after all these pictures coming in over facebook, we could tell that Gnomey was getting closer and closer to home.  As we waited for him to show up, the speculation continued to build... Would Gnomey's traveling companions reveal themself, or will it remain a mystery?  Well this morning, we opened our front door and -- sure enough -- Gnomey was back!

He showed up with beads (God only knows what he did to get them), money (won in Vegas?), cool new shades, HAND CUFFS (?$!), and -- most importantly -- a great photo album with many of the pics I posted here and some new ones that never made it to Facebook. 

Luckily, the best pic of all reveals Gnomey's traveling companions and host while he was on holiday...

Gnomey was with my great neighbors, The Brophys, along with a family visiting from Italy who I never got to meet.

So thanks to Mike, Sarah and Italian Family for sharing your vacation with Gnomey and with us.  It was a lot of fun for everyone involved... and welcome home~!