Gal Pals.

On the Friday after Thanksgiving, four wonderful old friends converged to catch up over some fabulous food. It had been a long time since the four of us had been together, but trust me when I say that Maynaze Icewater's still got it!

Here Sara, Alisa, Maria, and Beth show that old friends really are the best.

San Francisco.

I spent a week in San Francisco in early October for a conference. It wasn't as much fun to travel by myself as it is with buddies, but I love the city and got a few good pictures on the trip.

The Golden Gate Bridge is surely my favorite bridge. This is the view from the Sausalito side.

Another view with a boat. A bit hazy that day.

The San Francisco skyline. I had dinner one night at a restaurant on a pier. It is truly a sight to see the monstrous cargo ships coming in carrying untold numbers of items made in China.

The Pacific Ocean as seen from Highway 1. I don't know what it was, but every beach we stopped to visit absolutely stank to high heaven. Anyone know what's with the smell?

A big thanks to my new pal Aggie up in Canada for chauffeuring me around!

Over the Foothill.

I turned 30 (gulp) at the end of July. It feels pretty much the same as 29, in case you were wondering!

I don't have any pictures, but my MIL Laura and Russ conspired to throw a surprise birthday dinner at Mike & Laura's at the end of August. I had no clue!

It was so nice to get to spend time with friends and see all the kids play together. Every birthday should be so lovely!

Oopsie.

I know, it's been at least a decade since I updated this dilapidated old blog. I promise to do better. But let's face it, you don't pay to read the crazy things I say so do you really have room to complain? :)

Goodbye.

I don’t know what blogs are meant to be, but I see this as a way to send something out somewhere in some meaningful way. It seems that most blogs are filled with only the bright spots of life, but the truth is that we all live in the same world. We are all touched by death, by illness, by disability, and by hurt itself. So I hope you won’t mind if I use this place to say goodbye so someone I never knew.

I believe I lost a baby this week. Some say that God knows best. I’m never sure what is His will, and what just happens. I tend to think that life just happens in a chaotic fashion with one thing causing another, then another and while we may look for a reason, there simply may not always be one. Either way, whether by His design or by happenstance, I know that He knows far more and far better than I do. And I will give thanks and praise to Him in all things.

So goodbye, tiny love. You and I will never look into each other’s eyes and see right into our shared soul in the middle of a dark March night. We will never know how fiercely I would have loved you, or all the secret, tender moments we would have shared. I will never see you smile. You will never know the warmth and pure love of my embrace.

But know that I loved you from the moment you occurred to me. Know that I would have held you with a mother’s greatest passion, and that I would have given you the world in the palm of my hand, or spent myself in the trying.

I am so sorry that our time together ended almost as quickly as it began. And because of that, I have nothing to lay to rest. Nothing to say. Nothing to do. But you’ve meant no less to me than if our time together had been long. You will always, always have a place in my heart.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord make his face shine upon you, and be gracious unto you.
May the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace.

I pray that He will cradle you in His great arms—for my sake.

Hello Beantown.

Yankee Doodle, look out! Emily and Allison and I took Boston by storm in early June. Boston is supposedly one of the best cities to walk but take it from me-- cobblestones ain't comfy!

Sore feet aside, our trip to Boston was wonderful. It was my first time there and I truly enjoyed the combination of the village feel alongside the history that seeps out of every corner of the city. It isn't as fast-paced as New York and it isn't as large, but there is plenty to do and see in this beautiful, bustling city. Reflecting on the great men and women of the past-- their courage, their downright fearless acts-- it isn't hard to imagine where Bostonians of today get their feisty spirit.

A couple of highlights included a boat trip on which we learned that Boston considers itself "The Hub of the Universe." Wow. Seriously? Egocentric, perhaps? And on a day that might have reached into the low 80's with no humidity, the news stations warned in alarming tones, "Stay inside! Drink plenty of water! Dress lightly!" Those people don't even know what hot is.

Here are some pics from around town. We couldn't take pictures of my favorite place, the Isabella Stewart Gardener Museum. It's a beautiful villa-- architecturally amazing-- stocked with art of many mediums from a wide range of eras.

If you ever stop in Boston, please, please visit this breathtaking space created by a woman who must have been a visionary force in her time.

Moms.

Recently my addiction to the moms message board has escalated to a whole new level. The girls meet every Tuesday at 8:00 (after our small ones are tucked in for the evening) for dinner and plenty of laughs. Not only do we shut down the restaurant du jour, we tend to loiter in the parking afterward too!

From L to R: Lee Ann, Bonnie, Stephanie, Michelle, Patrick (waiter-- not a mom!), Jayne, Michele, Sara, Tracy, and Beth.