Visits with the BFF

My bestie came to visit the first week of June.  It was a bittersweet trip.  You see, we live half way across the country from each other and we only get to see each other a few days a each year, if we're lucky.  The last time we say each other was at my wedding...she was my maid of honor.  We didn't have any date set for a 2016 reunion.  

(Summer Bucket List : Hike a Trail Completed : June 4, 2016)

But then my dad died and she said, 'I'll be there at the funeral if you want.'  I most definitely wanted her there, but knew I would be so wrapped up in funeral/visitation planning.  So we decided to wait a month.  Things would settle down and settle in and I knew I would need her more then.  So that's what she did.  Hopped on a plane and kept me out of depression for a few days.  

"That's when I realized what a true friend was. Someone who would always love you-the imperfect you, the confused you, the wrong you- because that's what people are supposed to do."

Thank you for always being there for me for the last 18 years! 

Family Vacation: Part Two: Yellowstone

On Monday, we got up early and went to Yellowstone.  When I checked the weather in the morning, it said thunderstorms all day long.  But someone looked out for us and we only had cloudy skies until the late afternoon.

We drove on scenic highway 191 and watched the Gallitan River flow along next to our car.  (Which was pretty cool since that is one of the rivers they used to film A River Runs Through It.)

 ^^Oh hey Mr. Grizzly.

^^ Old Faithful

 ^^That water was FREEZING!!! I've never felt water that cold before.  Crazy cold.

 ^^ This big guy created quite a commotion right next to the main road through Yellowstone.  And all he wanted to do was sleep.

^^Just taking a stroll down the highway...no big deal!

 ^^Mammoth Springs

There was a big rain storm in the evening while we had dinner.  We thought it stopped for good, but when mom and I came out from a bathroom break it was raining again.  And then we watched this double rainbow form over Yellowstone.  

Rainbow are so significant to our family.  And the fact that we saw this beauty on our trip...breathtaking.  One of my absolute favorite parts of the trip by far.

OBX & VA 2013 | Part Three

Our third and last day at the beach couldn’t have been more perfect.  When we got up we headed straight for the beach.  The sun was shinning and the air was fairly cool.

After a day at the beach, Brandi and I adventured out to the sand dunes.  We had so much fun.

Our last stop was the pier and then we headed home, back to Virginia.

We arrived back home around 4 am.  It was a dreary day so we couldn't go out on the boat (bummer!)  Instead, we had a slow day recovering before we went out to celebrate Brandi's 24th birthday.  There were about 40 of us and we rented a party bus to take us to a club.  So fun!

This is what 16 years of best friends looks like!

OBX & VA 2013 | Part Two

The next day of our trip was dreary and it rained a little bit.  We had planned on going to a different beach about 45 minutes away, but since the beach wasn’t an option, the girls (Brandi, her mom, and I) decided to spend the day shopping in the town just north of us, Duck.  And yes, we did some damage.

In the middle of our shopping excursion, we checked out a pet store and they had 4 kittens up for adoption.  Brandi’s family has 3 cats and Brandi was looking at cats just a few days prior.  She fell in love (ok, we all fell in love) with a tuxedo kitten.  He was the perfect addition to our shopping crew.

After our shopping day, we went back to the beach house and had a family/group dinner.  (Brandi’s brother and 2 of his friends were staying at the beach house as well.)  Everyone had crab legs and I ate all the sides since I’m not a seafood lover.  After dinner, some of us played a game and then took advantage of the hot tub and just enjoyed each others company.  It had been an awfully long time since I’d seen this family so it was great to catch up.