Monday, March 10, 2008

time of refreshment


there is nothing like spending time with a good friend. sitting down with someone who has known you forever (okay, maybe not FOREVER--but does seven years count?), drinking coffee face to face, talking about life, kids, God, how to get stains out, gardening, politics (more specifically, who should be president)--not necessarily in that order, but definitely the deep and the shallow all mixed in together!


my friend from boston came down with her 9-month-old last week, and that's exactly what we got to do. it was heaven for me. i kept worrying that she didn't have as much fun as she had hoped, because the weather didn't really cooperate that much (i know, i know--you don't feel sorry for us!). it rained or was overcast a good amount of the time. despite this fact, we persevered and went to the beach one day anyway (to pass-a-grille, my favorite beach around tis area, and with glorious sunsets just about every night).

this was a hilarious endeavor (at least to me), because her baby was trying to eat the sand while mine just sort of laid there wondering "where the heck are we?" but we hung out on the beach, talked a lot, dipped our toes into the freezing water and quickly retreated back to the towel and tent, and waited for it to rain. despite the cloudiness, our shoulders managed to get a little burned, and then we ate lunch outside across from the beach. very fun and relaxing day.


we also managed to fit in TWO trips to target (yes you read that right; it is not a typo). we both love that place, and i haven't been able to shop anywhere in a few weeks because of budget constraints. i'm sure you all know just how much time you can waste in that store, wandering around, finding things you just have to buy that you never knew you needed before you went in (talk about consumerism--but let's not think about that right now...). well we found out just how much time we could waste in there with a friend! and i even lost my purse at one point because i got so beside myself. luckily a good samaritan turned it in withOUT stealing the cash that was inside.


my friend brought a baby blanket she had made for her son, so it inspired me to want to learn how to crochet. it's made out of granny squares. i wish i had taken a picture; it's SO cool. she crocheted one out of regular squares for my daughter before she was born, and all 3 kids have used it. well...let's just say the crochet lessons didn't last long. i did buy a big bag of yarn, so now i just have to figure out when i can get together with my friend krystal for some serious tutorials. i guess for someone who doesn't know how to crochet, granny squares aren't exactly the easiest thing to start out doing. but i'm determined...i think i would rather make a baby blanket (or a regular size one for that matter) than a scarf my kids will never get to wear! oh, so karin ended up giving crochet "lessons" to gillian and aedan, who both wanted to learn how to work with the yarn. believe it or not, aedan actually sat still longer and was more concentrated than gillian. the pictures are hilarious; there are a couple below.

there was lots of eating involved during the visit as well. that is also so much more fun when you are with a friend. everything tastes better, even junk food. :) i think i need a detox now... and we kept saying we were going to watch a movie, but we ended up talking every night until we were worn out and ready to fall into bed. a good conversation is so much better than a movie, right?



aedan really focused on crocheting

eric in the stroller at pass-a-grille beach



out to eat at cappy's pizza in our neighborhood


the babies playing together. it was really fun to see them interact. they tried to talk to each other in grunts.



a picture of me that does NOT even remotely represent how i look in real life--karin did an excellent job capturing the best angle of me. :)

i think he looks like an old man in this picture. he had a blowout in those shorts but they were the only ones we had, so we kept them on! :)


on the way home from the beach; we really wore eric out i think. what a beautiful baby, huh?

so here's to friends--may they come visit more often! :)

4 comments:

Amelia Plum said...

sounds like a great time with your friend. the pictures are wonderful and, yes, it's hard not to be jealous when you're wearing a sleeveless shirt with the sand and gorgeous clear blue sky behind you - it's been grey forever in pittsburgh

Amy said...

i am glad you had so much fun. i am jealous. and that looks exactly like you.

Kellie said...

Such cuties :)

Glad you guys had such a great visit.

Asti said...

Beautiful pictures. Glad you had such a lovely time. Very envious of you in your skirt and bare legs !! asti x