The Post-Vacay Weekend

I love the first full weekend after a vacation.

It's awesome to go away, and it's awesome to return home again. The first weekend back is a cozy, crazy act of snuggling in, catching up, running errands, and local outings--smothered in a sauce of loving-where-you-live. Between the four of us, we had friends over for dinner, played in a soccer tournament, attended a girls leadership conference, went to a birthday party, and celebrated a postponed Valentine's Day.

DS took  this selfie while doing the weekend honey-do list on Upper West Side, and it made me smile. Getting the goodies to make dinner for friends on Saturday.

Throughout March, AS and I are attending a girl's leadership workshop every Saturday afternoon, and we attended our first session this weekend. It's a mom-daughter program developed to help girls learn confidence-building skills and leadership skills--especially in dealing with friends. The program also touches on coping with stress. It gives moms and daughters a language to talk about all of it, so when a situation pops up we've have familiar and common reference points. We're already talkin' "trash can behavior," "the double sorry," and "I may be wrong, but I am strong!"

It's an inspiring, well-organized program, so please check it out! https://girlsleadership.org/

AS and I are making the most of it with fancy mom-daughter lunches beforehand.

Friday night was unexpected, bizarre and a totally fun Valentine's celebration. I so appreciate Valentine's Day celebrated on any other day besides Valentine's Day.

I'm sure they do this kind of thing in many other cities, but the whole night felt like an "only in NYC" kind of night.

Dinner and a show at The Lodge at Gallow Green is an adventure in immersive theater. The show was "Sleep No More," a take on Macbeth. I can't give any more away, other than to say the evening went a little like this:

From The Alps to The Rockies, A Journey of Going Up While Coming Down

Learning to ski in your mid-40's is something close to torture.

It's totally unnatural to slide down a mountain, and for three years now, my middle-aged brain has waged a valiant battle against the entire notion. But my head is losing the battle. It's letting go, and by golly, I'm sliding down the damn mountain. It's terrifyingly electrifying.

I cried at the top of the mountain this past week in Colorado. Not because I was disabled by fear (as usual), but because I was so proud of myself and so filled with joy to ski with my kids and my husband. I spent days skiing with my family. I spent days not being stuck on the bunny slope or at the restaurant with a glass of wine waiting for everyone else to finish a gorgeous day of activity. I laughed with my son as we played chase on the slopes, and had cute conversations with my daughter on long chair lift rides to the top. I had dates with my husband--on skies. None of this was ever assumed; it was never clear I'd break through my fear. I've spent years trying, frustrated with myself while frustrating those around me.

This trip was different. Something clicked. A loosening occurred. I've got a long way to go, but I'm so proud of the terrain I've covered. I'm still stunned I can check this box. Indeed, through the process of learning how to come down, I've been lifted up.

It goes without saying that I'm even prouder of my two beautiful children, who love to ski and impressed the hell out me this trip. They totally took down black diamonds for the first time, like the stars that they are.

This was also the first time we've had the opportunity to ski with friends, and we happily skipped the formal lessons and skied as a group. But this wasn't just any set of friends--we're god parents to each others' children and some of us go as far back as middle school. This was a major reunion, for while we've seen each other in various smaller combinations, this occasion marked the first time all six adults have been together in thirteen years.

 No, seriously. I guess they're experts, cuz they did this one!

Photo bomb!

 The grown-up buds:

We capped things off on our ski adventure with a trip to the local hot springs, then a couple of days in Boulder at the home of our dear ski buds, including a Denver Nuggets vs. Brooklyn Nets game.

A huge thanks to DB and AF for all their planning and hosting--we had an amazing time!

And a really, really huge thank you to DB and AF for the cowboy boots. What a hit! Yee haw!!!

Berlin & Idaho, Together Again

It's an inside joke between me and my dear friend, DSH. I'll just leave it at that. :-)

Before settling down in NYC, in addition to a stop in OH to meet those precious twin baby cousins and an Amsterdam reunion in Portland, OR, we made our way to northern Michigan for a highly anticipated trip to see my oldest friend in the world and her darling children.

It had been way to long, probably more than six years, and the visit came at a time when I think DSH and I both needed a dose of some real-deal girl time.

Can't deny the beauty of northern Michigan!

The only time my kids have really hung out with a teen and pre-teen. I so took advantage of the shock and awe factor, and the big kids were such good sports.

Boys too!

DH's awesome backyard.

We ate s'mores from Michigan to Portland. It couldn't be helped.

Arcades, miniature golf, water slides . . . old fashioned summer fun for kids.

This floating trip took slow-going to a whole new place. DSH had to walk the river and pull our gaggle of tubers most of the way, if we had any hope of arriving at our landing spot before the end of the day. Somehow I couldn't find the energy  to help and spent the entire afternoon lounging in my tube. Thanks, DSH, for letting me chill-ax!

On the other hand, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park was anything but sleepy the day we visited. The wind was insane! We barely made it off the dunes, on two feet anyway. :-)

 Tuckered out.

I'll cherish this time with my dear friend. 

I've known DSH since middle school, and although I moved around quite a bit after that, we stayed close. We stayed close even if it meant skipping school to hang out surreptitiously at one another's high school, or even if it meant driving huge distances in tiny cars like, say, from Springfield, MO to upstate NY to visit each other at our respective colleges. The summer I spent living with DSH, following my junior year study abroad in France, was one of the best summers of my life--evidenced by the fact that I returned to school for my senior year with only $17 in my pocket--and a cat.

I love you DSH. I'm very grateful for our friendship, and this chance to spend time in your daily life in beautiful northern Michigan.