Girlfriends are Good for the Soul

Yesterday I had the rare opportunity to go out to brunch with a group of girlfriends.  This is a group of ladies that used to see each other socially all of the time.  You know, back when we were young, wild, and free.  Back then, Saturdays were for sleeping in, brunching, then shopping at the mall.  (Am I alone here when I say that just thinking about the mall now makes me a little twitchy, and not in a good way?)  We'd then go home to nap and ready ourselves for Saturday, part 2, which usually involved dancing the night away at a club downtown and drinking way too much. 

My twenties were nothing short of amazing, y'all. 

A lot of life has happened since then, and we don't get to gather nearly as often as we'd like.  There have been weddings, new houses, babies, careers, and, well- growing up.  But this group of ladies, we've stuck together through all of this life.  We've cried happy tears for each other when life has been particularly joyful, cried sad tears when life has been cruel, laughed together when life has been ridiculous.  We've celebrated each other's triumphs and grieved one another's losses.  And even though we don't see each other as often as we used to, there is still a whole lot of love between us.

My soul is recharged and my heart is full.

 

30 Day Challenge | Day 30: The End

Well folks, I did it!  (Late today, I know...but this post specifically asks for a picture taken today, and I had to wait for J to get home and take one.)  THE CHALLENGE has come to an end.  It was fun while it lasted, but I'm not too sad to see it go.  There were a few days there when I had to work really hard to get a post done!  I tried to avoid this by writing several at a time when I had the chance, and scheduling them to post on the appropriate day.  Way to plan ahead, B!

In any case, here I am today with the nugget:

And three good things that have happened during these last 30 days?  Here ya go!

1. Family Reunion

Playing with Mimi's dogs.

Grammy loves me!

So does Mimi!

Grammy and Grampy loved spending time with G.

Gabe wanted in on the beer action, too.

Baby G and I got on an airplane (yes, an airplane!) and flew to Ohio for a reunion.  It was great to show Gabe off to some extended family.  Also, my baby is a rock star.  Overall, AH-mazing on the plane.  Wouldn't hesitate to travel solo with him again (although we definitely missed J!).

Also noteworthy?  I am a chronic over-packer.  I feel like I need my entire wardrobe and forty-eleven pairs of shoes, just in case.  (In case of what, you may ask?  In case of a fashion emergency, I suppose.  You never know when an occasion might present itself that calls for a evening gown and stilettos.)   Well for this trip, not only was I solo with an infant, but I carried my luggage on.  That's right.  I got all of my clothes- and the nugget's- into one tiny rolling suitcase.  Everything else went into the diaper bag.  Baby in stroller- and we're off.  My sister was shocked and amazed at this- to which I replied "That's right.  I'm f*@#ing supermom."

2. Visit to The Lake

Gabe loves the water!

Feel the breeze...

Sunbathing.

Our good friends have a house on Lake Gaston.  (Well, actually, their parents do, but you get the gist.)  I have spent time with them there every summer since I moved to NC.  I love it.  I love being on the water, I love the serenity of the whole place, and I love spending time with some of my favorite people.  This was our first time there this summer, and Gabe's first time there ever!  He loved the breeze by the lake, and was really a trooper the entire weekend.  Good times had by all.

3. A New School Year

That's right, with this crazy year-round schedule that I work, the new school year is underway.  I love the start of a new school year.  It is so full of potential.  The promise of being the best teacher I've ever been, trying new things in the classroom, meeting a new batch of students.  My position since I left the classroom is a little different, in that I don't work with the same 25 kids all day, everyday.  As a matter of fact, I don't yet know who all of my students will be!  But I've gotten to work individually with many sweet new faces, and in the next couple of weeks, will begin my small group classes with kindergarten and first grade.  I like to think that I make a difference for these beginning readers.  And there are not many things better in this world than helping a child become a reader.  

Well readers, there ya have it.  THE CHALLENGE comes to a close.  But keep checking back!  I've got plenty more to say...;)

Happy Day, Amanda and Matt!

Yesterday was a beautiful day! One of my dearest friends married her true love.

It was so nice to see two people, so in love, sharing beautiful, self-written vows, amongst thousands of roses in bloom. Not a dry eye in the house, I'm tellin' ya'!

Afterward, it was so much fun for friends to be together at "The Alley." This reception was unconventional to be sure, but loads of fun!

A few photos to highlight the beauty and fun that was Amanda and Matt's wedding day! Congrats, you two. May the rest of your lives together be filled with as much love as we all felt yesterday!

Exchanging vows and rings in the Rose garden.

Now THIS is a wedding reception you wish you were at, right?

Me and the beautiful bride.

Me and MY true love.

Girl's Night Out!

Last night, me and some of my girls went out on the town!

We went out to see 'Sex and the City 2', then in honor of the ladies in the movie, out for martinis, of course!

What a wonderful night.

Let's start with the movie review:  I won't go so far as to title my review "SUCKS in the City," as one reviewer so rudely stated.  But, as a true fan of the series, I can say that the movie was...meh.  The fashion was outrageous and our favorite characters were their kooky selves.  However, dare I say it...I was suddenly acutely aware that my beloved ladies are getting...old.  All of their desert romps while wearing haute couture  and 4-inch heels seemed even sillier somehow than they would have if the foursome were in their twenties.



Liza Minelli singing Beyonce's "All the Single Ladies" was, however, brilliant.

And the shoes...ah, the shoes.  How I love the shoes.

All in all, an enjoyable movie.  But my friend Beth may have said it best as we left the theater: "Is it okay if I hope there's not going to be a third one?"  Word.

And speaking of getting old...

We were positively giddy about the thought of going out for drinks on trendy downtown Glenwood Avenue after the movie.

Now, this is something we used to do on a regular basis back in the day.  But now, it's such a rare occasion, that you would have thought it was Christmas by the way we were acting.  As a matter of fact, one woman, who watched as we asked the bartender to take our picture, asked if it was someone's birthday, because we must be celebrating something!

Celebrating, indeed. 

Celebrating delicious drinks, good friends, and a oh-so-rare night out with the girls, Sex and the City style.










Cheers!

Feel Good Friday- Cinco de Mayo!

This week, Cinco de Mayo makes me happy!

Wednesday was the fifth of May, which in my opinion, means it's time to celebrate with tacos, margaritas, and friends!

We determined that the best way to get a good turnout at a party is to throw it on a weeknight.  Everybody's in town, and everybody is looking for a reason for a mid-week get together!

Needless to say, J and I had quite the crowd show up at our house.  Everybody brought some kind of taco fixins', I made pitchers of pomegranate margaritas (I added a little simple syrup to this recipe- delish!), and instant party!

We had a great time with great friends.  Enjoy a few pictures of the Cinco shenanigans!

Heather and Kim

Blaire and Ali

Some of the guys playing cornhole

Cate and Will, eating chips and having fun!

Sweet baby Christopher

Mark thought it would be funny to turn the sprinkler on- Richard was the unfortunate victim!

A Saturday of Landing Planes

This weekend, our favorite local brewery opened its new location!

We were so excited when we heard good beer was coming to the 'Quay!  In our little town, any hint of a night life or a cool hang-out is sheer amazingness.  Aviator Brewery started out in a small airplane hangar, but quickly grew in local popularity...due to its extreme awesomeness, of course.  Now they have a much bigger brewery space, in addition to the taproom, where we like to have weekend beverages of the non-Miller Lite variety.

Lots of our pals showed up for the big day!  Somehow I managed to miss photographing our pal Jason and his wife, Blaire.  Jason works for Aviator, and always keeps us updated on the goings-on at the brewery.  (Just so you know, since I somehow missed their picture, Jason looked particularly jaunty with his mutton chops.)

Here are some other photos from the day!

J and I...looking shiny.  It was scorchingly hot.  I was very proud of my hair before we left the house...once we got there, not so much.

Scott and Amy.  Scott and J spent lots of time speaking nerd.

Julie and Ryan.  Thank God for Julie and her hair tie.  Without her, my aforementioned hair would have been a COMPLETE disaster.

Kim and her new man, Chris.  Cutie new couple!

Laurel and Amanda.  Two of my favorite ladies!

Good times!

Feel Good Friday

I'm debuting a new feature on the blog today.  It's called "Feel Good Friday," and it's just a little bit of positivity before heading into the weekend! 

This week's "Feel Good" (besides the pretty new look of the blog!):

We are SO lucky to have some of our best friends living in the neighborhood (one reason why I bought this house)!  Ali and Mark and their cutie son Will dropped by this week for one of our "neighborly visits."  It was a random Tuesday night, and so nice to sit around and have a drink and visit for awhile.

Will, who is a 2-year-old on the shy side, has a serious love for Jason.  It is beyond adorable to see the two of them together.  Will inevitably climbs up onto the couch next to J and hands him a book, then looks up at him, ready to listen to the story.  If Will chooses to wander around the house, he stops every few minutes to look at Jason, just to see if he's still there, and more importantly, if his attention is focused on Will (it almost always is).

But this visit, something else caught Will's attention.  Usually our neighborly visits happen at the V's house, since we usually visit well past Will's bedtime.  But this week, they stopped at our house.  Of course, in the beginning, the dogs chased Will everywhere (see last week's post).  Will, who has just recently found his voice, ran around saying "No, Daph!  No way!"  It was way. too. cute.

But once the dogs calmed down a little bit, we needed something to keep Will entertained, since we are lacking in the toy department.  So we decided to turn on a movie for him.

I think our super-big TV up on the wall must have felt to Will like being in a movie theatre.  As soon as we turned it on- instantly mesmerized.

Then we handed him the remote (one of his favorite things- typical boy), and he settled down on the couch, kicked back, and relaxed in front of "The Incredibles."

I mean really, could he be any cuter?

So thank you, V family, for a great neighborly visit with the two of you and your awesome kid!  GREAT inspiration for my first "Feel Good Friday"!