173.72 MILES OF FUN

25.64 miles - Our friend Carol had invited Naomi and I to lunch as a birthday gift for Naomi and yesterday was the big day.  Naomi and I took off, picking up Carol on the way.  The first thing Carol did when she got in the car was to give Naomi a beautiful scarf she had knit.  Naomi put it on immediately, of course, then we headed to Lavender Bleu Tea Room.  

The weather was beautiful and Naomi chose to have us sit outside.  All the food and tea was delicious, but I think one of the best parts of the whole thing was the look on Naomi's face when her plate arrived with the "Little Ones Tea".  Her eyes grew wide as she looked at all the miniature goodies laid before her.  Highly impressed and with much emphasis she said, "Wow!" We chatted over our lunch for well over an hour, then spent some time browsing the gift shop before heading home. 

Here's a picture of all three of us.

And one of the birthday girl with her new scarf on.

Isn't she looking grown up?!

25.64 miles - We headed back toward our homes, Carol and I chatting on the way to her house.  As she got out of the car, Carol handed me a bag with some candy for Tim and the big boys, a charm for Naomi, and two little somethings for me.  Sneaky lady!  Naomi had said she wanted to be with Carol as we browsed the store, so I had wandered around other areas in order for Naomi to have Carol to herself for a bit.  Turns out they were choosing little treats for everyone.  Want to see what Carol gave me? 

A magnet, which is now on the W magnetic board my sister made for me.

And a charm, which is now hanging on my W charm stand.

I love Ws.  And I love Carol.  But I loved Carol before she gave me Ws.

61.24 miles - Tim left for an interview the minute we returned from our lunch date, then I left for a slumber party the minute he returned from his interview.  I hopped back in the car for a trip to Battle Ground.  There was crazy Friday afternoon traffic, so I averaged 30 mph for the whole trip, but I turned off the radio and just enjoyed the silence.  I may or may not have missed an exit near the end of my trip.  If I had missed one, though, then it would have only added five minutes of travel time and one crass, yet very helpful, gas station employee to the trip.  Hypothetically, of course. 

Friday night was spent with five other ladies and one of my favorite babies.  I love time with these girls -  time spent eating and laughing, talking about superficial and serious things, then eating and laughing some more. We stayed up til about 1:30 Saturday morning, then hit the sack. 

This morning we woke up and lounged around the house all morning.  I think it was about 1:00 by the time everyone had eaten breakfast and gotten dressed.  It was such a relaxing morning! 

One of the things I learned this morning, which I feel a moral obligation to share with you, is that Pepperidge Farm's French Vanilla Pirouettes go really well with Thea's fruit salsa, which is a blended combo of strawberries, apples (I think she uses Pink Ladies), and kiwis.  This is important information that I will be sure to use for the rest of my life.  Don't know what Pirouettes are?  Here's a visual. 

One of our group had to leave at 1:00, but the rest of us went to The Catalyst a little later so that another member of the group could get her nose pierced.  Unfortunately, we forgot to take a group picture when we were all at the house, but we did manage to snap one on the piercing outing, though we were missing one person.

Once the nose ring mission was accomplished we headed back to the house for more eating, laughing, and talking.    

61.24 miles - A couple of the gals chose to stay one more night, but two of us needed to head back to our own homes this evening.  So I hopped back in the car for a nice drive home with the windows down, radio off, and a smile on my face.