This year I did not have to celebrate "singles' awareness day"...I had a handsome valentine. His name is Blake Schader and he is two-years-old. And when I landed at the San Jose airport, I walked out to a car where Blake was waiting in his car seat, holding a heart-shaped bag reading "Be Mine," filled with girly gifts. My gift for him was a toy ship that floats in water and goldfish snacks. His favorite were the goldfish.
His parents are incredible. Lisa has been one of my best friends for almost ten years now. Randomly, (actually not so randomly - she knew intuitively that I was having a hard weekend) Lisa sent me a picture of an itinerary the week before I arrived at the airport. Whose? Mine. She had transferred her husband's Southwest points over to my account and immediately bought me a ticket out for the weekend.
Our first night, Friday, was a perfect girls' night/Valentine's day. First, I caught up on gossip magazines while Lisa got her hair done. By caught up, I mean actually read them which I never do and I felt connected with the world...and it's gossip. Then we indulged in frozen yogurt where I got to introduce Lisa to the yogurt chips. I may have hooked her. All this was in preparation to then savor Austenland...with Bryan, Lisa's husband. He is a trooper. First he gave away his miles so I could fly out to visit, then he suffered through a chick flick with us - that's "Husband-of-the-year" status right there.
The next day, Lisa helped me remember that I love running. Utah's inversion has made it impossible to do any physical activity outside unless you are on a mountain, but in California we got to go out on a gorgeous path in tank tops! If only SJ weren't the most expensive city in the United States, I may have just stayed in California. We also snuck away to shop that day. Later, Blake and I had a great bike ride/scooter trip around the neighborhood while we left Lisa home to do all the work of cooking for missionaries. Basically, I did that a lot: made Lisa cook while I played with her adorable sons.
Sunday, the Relief Society President in me took a much-needed hiatus since Lisa and I went to sacrament and then drove 2 1/2 hours to see Rachel and her darling family. Spending the day chatting made it almost feel like we were roommates again. I felt so happy; it's pure joy being around those ladies who I've loved for so long.
Monday, I lost my purse at Stanford and celebrated the honesty of their students by going out for sushi afterward. Mixed in to this trip were incredible conversations with Lisa. She inspires me continually, helps me better understand myself, and recharge. She is a true blessing in my life.
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