We had long planned a weekend to go away but it seemed so far off when we planned it! But time sped by as it does, and my weekend away with my close friends was here! But first, it was gymnastics time since it was Friday morning :) I got to sit back and watch these two in the gymnastics class. Jon is such a good dad. And Q is getting SO strong!! The things she can do in class amazes me! The growth in her is so evident when I watch her doing gymnastics.
All packed and ready to go and Jon was sad (jokingly - in reality, he was very supportive and happy for me to get away for the weekend). I felt so apprehensive! Excited for my weekend with my friends, but nervous about leaving! I've never left them for a weekend before. Heck, I've never ever left them overnight! This is Jon's first time overnight with Q on his own and I knew he would be just fine. He's just as good (better actually) of a parent as I am, and he loves her just as much. So I wasn't worried about leaving them, I just felt weird!
Off we went! And after about 30 minutes of driving we heard a big noise and saw something fly out of the car top carrier and Mary pulled over and we saw the straps had come undone! Dana took off down the highway to retrieve what we had lots - you can see her in the blue in the distance. She came back holding two bags of chips... yep thats what we lost that we needed to go get! Chips! haha!
We settled in and Dixie and I started dinner and Dana made a fire and Mary made sure everything was on and open and that every room had what it needed. Isn't that the awesome thing about going away with a group of moms? We all snap into action and get done what we need to do. haha! After dinner (turkey burgers wrapped in lettuce and kale salad - so delicious!!!! I love good food) we all settled into the cozy living room by the fire- Mary is on the couch under the blanket, Dixie on the recliner chair and Dana was on the floor colouring. Cozy and easy. We do these weekends so that we can relax and enjoy being away, but they are also intentional time together, so lots of things come pouring out. But its also so fun - Dixie commented to Mary and I on the amount that the two of us laugh, and the frequency of it. We can go from serious to laughing in a snap, and its just easy and not awkward. I love the depth to these friendships.
This is Mary's family cabin from the outside, which I'm not sure I've posted before. Isn't it amazing?! So quaint and cozy and its just a little oasis. I love Hornby Island and this cabin.
The beach just outside the cabin. Again, so beautiful. What a place. It's hard to not feel relaxed while here!!! We stayed up late talking and then when Mary and I went to the room we shared and got into our bunk beds, her and I laughed and talked some more. I fell asleep missing my family but feeling very filled and content. Waking up to this sight was just delightful - and then Mary made me breakfast which was so nice!
Jon sent this early in the morning - Andrew invited them over and cooked everyone breakfast. These besties were excited to be together! Man, they are SO cute!!!
After breakfast the boys headed to Nanaimo to take the girls to Jumpin Jimmines, and they said the girls had a blast! I loved seeing pictures of what they were up to! It really was so weird to go an entire day where I didn't see Q at all
After they left there, Andrew and Ady headed back home and Jon was heading up to Courtney with Quinny to go visit Nate. They stopped in at the pizza place Jacob works at and he treated them to lunch!
While they were doing that, I was hiking along Helliwell with the girls. It was just overwhelmingly gorgeous!
It was super windy when we were out on the point and we were laughing lots about that. Selfie time!
We tried a few different angles but they were all just as wild. Too funny!
We heard sea lions just off this coast, clear as day. So cool
I love that even as we are hiking, we are having good, honest and real conversation mixed in with so much laughter.
Once they got to Nate's, apparently Quinny walked in and said " Uncle Nate, you make me tea pease?" So he made her tea and they had a tea party together. He told Jon that he has never had such a little person ask him for tea before haha! She loves tea, we make it all the time at home. I think its so cute that she asks people that she comfortable with if they will make her some. Jon says that they had a great night hanging out there and playing. I love that he was able to be with his two closest friends while I was away!
After our hike we went back home to just have a lazy afternoon. Mary wanted to nap, so the rest of us grabbed books/coloring books and blankets and got cozy. Mary grabs her blanket and lay on the recliner seat on the couch. When I asked her what happened to going to have a nap, she responds with "I want to nap, but I don't want to miss out, so I'm going to lay here and close my eyes but then I can still hear what you are all saying". Oh man I laughed at that! But I think thats a perfect picture of what our time together with the four of us looks like. Nobody wants to miss out, because it's all so good. At one point we decided to head out to the little shops and walk around a bit and Mary and I made a beeline to the store to look for these fritters. The first time we ever went to Hornby with the Eassons, Mary introduced me to these little delights and ever since I have been hooked. I will actually be at home sometimes and think about these, that is how good they are. Apparently they get brought in fresh from a bakery in Courtney, and they sell out SO fast. We were in luck and they had a few left and we snatched them up! It makes me happy that she can appreciate these sorts of things with me.
Dixie and I were on dinner, since they made lunch for us, and we made taco salad. Our food all weekend was just so good. We went for another walk, out to the beach this time before it got dark. This picture made us laugh because I have the weirdest smile on my face and Mary has crazy eyes. Yikes! haha!
That night we all pulled out our adult colouring books (yes all of us own one!) and sat and coloured together. It was perfect because there was some deep and heavier stuff to discuss, and this provides a distraction. Such good soul-filling conversation. These are women who have my back, 100%, no matter what. Friendships like these are such a gift, and I look at these three and am SO grateful for what we have. It didn't just fall to us - we were very intentional from the beginning, and we worked very hard to nurture and build these friendships. Community takes work, and I am so glad that we were all willing to go there with each other. These women have become family and they know the depths of my soul and love me regardless (and vice versa). We share the hard with each other so that we can walk with one another through it. Then when the really good stuff happens, we can cheer for each other, and celebrate joyfully. I am incredibly humbled and thankful by and for these friendships.
After a while we migrated to the couch to be near the fire and finally as it was getting so late, we all started to get ready for bed. Mary is not really a hugger, and Dana is huge hugger. Dana hugged Mary and then commented on how "huggable" and "nurturing" her hugs are. Mary replies with "ya, thats because you're nuzzled into my chest". We were all laughing about it still a while later and Dana says "Dixie you need to try it" and Mary sighs and goes into her room to put a sweater on and says "come here Dix" and pulls her in. Oh man, we were laughing so hard. Maybe you had to be there for it to be funny?! Silly stuff.
Sunday morning we had a really lazy morning and sat around drinking coffee and making breakfast and just chatting. Both Mary and I were feeling ready to get home to our girls. We packed up and cleaned the cabin and headed for the ferry and made it home by dinnertime. Jon sent me this a few minutes before I pulled up - he told her I was coming, so she was watching for me. They did great together! Jon said she was asking for me a lot by the end. I felt so full coming home, it was a beautiful weekend. Coming home to this face, eagerly waiting for me was the perfect finish.
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