i have been friends with my best friend for over 14 years now. and in those 14 years, there has been a rare period of time in which haven't seen each other. even just a quick cup of coffee or meeting up to grab tacos for an hour, we always made a point to spend time together.
but last summer, i made the big move out of sacramento to a southern california town some-400 miles away.
and in the last almost-year, we have had one "girls only" trip when she came down to visit me for a weekend in september.
needless to say, it was high time that we met up for a girls weekend again and this time, we decided to meet halfway.
san luis obispo, california was calling our names and this past weekend we got to meet there, have some serious best friend time and take lots of ridiculous pictures. even though i am thankful for the pictures, i know that even without them, our weekend together was one i will never forget.
here is our weekend and far more pictures than i'm sure anyone cares to see. :)
leaving los angeles.
it's safe to take pictures while driving. my mom would be proud.
the drive up was one of my favorite parts. the scenery was gorgeous and i spent the entire drive with Jesus, just worshipping Him and appreciating His awesome creation.
almost there!
right after meeting up! about to hit the town ;)
lunch in downtown SLO. we spent over 2 hours talking even after we finished lunch.
the SLO "wall of gum."
no, i'm not joking. it was pretty awesome and very gross.
making our mark on the wall.
Cowboy Cookie
"you know you want one."
my shopping bags after our afternoon in downtown :)
in those bags are a flowy purple tank top, a rose ring, a grey hoodie and some brown heels!
a very expensive successful day out indeed! :)
before we left downtown, it started to get really cold and windy, so we both bought warm drinks from starbucks, went back to the hotel and talked over our coffee for 3 and a half hours.
it was 8:30pm before we decided we might need dinner,
but still we got all purtied up for a night on the town.
we headed back downtown and found the cutest little southern place that had country music blaring from the speakers. between that and the nice guy outside insisting that we come check the place out, it was impossible to resist.
1. how cute is this place! it was so homey and everyone knew each other by name.
2. i love my root beer and that cowboy picture behind me.
3. there was definitely a dead buffalo hanging right above my head. {he was awesome.}
4. beautiful friend :)
we had way too much fun at that place. we drank our old-fashioned sodas and sang along to the country songs we knew all the words to and ate our chicken and fries that were to-die-for...right up until they closed the place and the people working there waved good-bye to all the people they knew.
after that, we went back to the hotel. i took a long, much-needed bath and then turned on some "islam in america" special on CNN. kate laughed at me the next morning about how i go on vacation and watch Islam specials. but seriously, who can turn something like that off??
anyways.
the next morning, this was the view from our bathroom window.
sunshine was pouring in while i took a shower. i couldn't stop thanking God. SLO is really such a beautiful place.
we got ready for the day and walked from our hotel to a little country breakfast place {are you seeing a theme here?} called apple farm,
which was way too stinkin cute for its own good.
after another 2 hours talking at breakfast, we wandered around the rest of apple farm, checked out their little gift shop and water wheel,
and then headed to the san luis obispo mission.
i've never been to a mission before, so i figured now was as good a time as ever. i still don't know what the meaning or reason behind missions are, but the building was old and super cool. it was neat to walk around and see all the exhibits: old newspapers and photographs and artifacts. the newspapers were my favorite part, with awesome headings like: "2 oxen for sale. great deal!" and "40,000 acres of lush land. buy now!" how different life is now. it's kind of surreal and part of me wishes for the simple life people had back when the state of California first began.
after the mission, we had no choice but to take the 15-minute drive down to the beach. my little car wound through trees of the hills down to the ocean and neither of us could get over how beautiful the drive was.
the beach was no exception. where we ended up was a tiny little town with one strip of shops right on the water. it was sweet and simple and i immediately fell in love.
we were quick to find an ice cream shop to grab some cold, delicious treats. :) we parked our bootays down on the sand and as we sat and slurped our ice cream, i soaked up each and every sensation within reach of my senses:
the taste of the ice cream, the sunshine grazing my shoulders, the sound of the seagulls overhead, the sand on my toes, and the conversation with my beloved friend about anything and everything.
it was honestly perfect.
after the beach, we headed back to the hotel and prepared to part ways.
we talked about seeing each other for the 4th of july.
"that's so weird," kate said. "making plans for 3 months away?"
i agreed. when did this happen? when did we grow up?
but that's one of the reasons why i love our friendship. because it's one of those where no matter how long we've been apart, being back together feels as though nothing has ever changed. as if we're just catching up on the weekend for a quick shopping trip. as if we're only a ten-minute drive apart, just like we used to be.
and it's a little bittersweet. but mostly just sweet.
because how many people are blessed with friendships like that?
i'm pretty dang lucky.
the drive home was equally as beautiful.
the fog wasn't hovering over the hills as it was before; instead, sunshine poured in the windows and once again, i lifted my hands in worship and wept joyful tears, thankful to be blessed with the presence of His Utmost High.
---
sometimes life is hard. sometimes there are moments when i'm just so tired that i don't care much about what is ahead or even right in front of me. sometimes i pray for Jesus to return just so i can finally be at rest in His arms. so i can have peace. so i can be in heaven.
but times like this past weekend, when life is simple and sweet,
i know that God does answer prayers, but never in the way we expect it.
because although Jesus hasn't come back yet,
He certainly brought a little piece of heaven down to me this past weekend.
and in moments like those,
i look up to the heavens with heartfelt thanks.
and i know that He knows
that i wouldn't mind if He waited just a little bit longer. :)
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