The four days that I have been dreaming of for weeks has finally come and unfortunately gone. My friend Allie and I escaped normal life for a bit. Just the two of us. Being away was nice. The beach was nice (and a little chilly.) The seafood was nice (actually it was phenomenal.) If I am being honest though, my favorite part of tour trip was the conversations that we had. Listening to her wisdom on marriage and motherhood, discussing the frustrations and disappointments of life, thanking God for giving us different lives than the ones we dreamt of as children, laughing at how naive we were (and maybe still are at times), and of course, smiling at the roller coaster of a friendship we share.
You see Allie and I are as different as night and day. Blonde and brunette. Spontaneous and structured. The comedian and the one who laughs. Risk taker and rule follower. The one who loves to cut-up and the one who is a little too serious at times. English major and Biology major. This list goes on and on. However, despite our differences, Al and I have balanced each other out and have stuck together for going on 27 years. And for that I will be eternally grateful. See below some snapshots of our friendship over the years as well as our trip!
In the words of Allie, “Ewwww... enough of the mushy stuff already. Let’s get to the fun parts of our trip.”
- Our first and second stops when we got there were Walmart and Target. Go figure.
- We went to The Hangout the first night we were there (which if you have ever been you know it is like summer camp crammed into one night.) However, we have unfortunately reached the age, where loud, crowded place are no longer our preference on most days. Not only that, but our hands were literally having to support our heads as we ate, so we wouldn’t fall asleep. (It was 9:00pm.)
- We had two rooms with a bed in each, yet it was decided that we would stay in one room. (Not my decision.)
- When planning for our trip, we said that we would do absolutely no work while we were away. When leaving for the trip, Allie said she had to send just one email and I said I brought my computer just in case we had time. The first morning of our trip, Allie wrote her lesson plans and sent various emails, while I edit photos for about 2 and a half hours. Obviously, we have a problem.
- Our first day at the beach, someone thought it would be a good idea to make their own parking spot and block us in. (Thankfully, the beach police had the situation under control.)
- A guy randomly came up and told Allie that she had a nice braid. (I hadn’t even notice she had a braid.)
- Every night, we would leave the house to get dinner at 5 or before, and we wouldn’t actually make up our mind as to where we wanted to eat until about 7:30. (One thing we have in common is being indecisive.)
- On the way home, we were in traffic for about 80% of the trip, making our trip 8 hours instead of the normal 5 1/2. Needless to say Allie and I were going a lit-tle crazy. I kept offering to drive and Allie kept refusing until about Birmingham. We got back on the interstate, and after about 1/2 of a mile the traffic let up. *insert laughing/crying emoji*
And after almost 96 hours together, (we surprisingly didn’t kill each other) we actually still had things to talk about. Needless to say, this trip with my bestie was much needed and one we will not likely forget.
Before I finish, there are several people we need to thank. First, to our parents for being friends resulting in our friendship. To Christian and the boys for allowing me to hog Allie for awhile. (Even though, we all know I was doing them a favor and giving them the actual vacation) To my parents for taking care of Quincy (and letting him do all the things I have trained him not to do.) To Mrs. Joy and her family for being kind enough to provide us with a place to stay. And lastly, we have to thank our God, because with His grace and love, our friendship only continues to grow stronger! (Also thanks to you for making it this far!!!!)
Thanks Al for being you, the person who accepts and encourages me always!
*Excuse all the low quality cellphone shots*
