It’s Sunday night and I’m missing my rovers! I’m still at Erika’s and thankful that I have little Sloaney Bologna to kiss on! I wanted to quickly post about our weekend for fear that if I don’t I will forget the wonderful memories we made this weekend. I’ll start by saying my sister knows how to put together a wonderful celebration and I’m feeling full on so many counts. I must be quick because Round 2 begins in the morning and I have to get some good sleep before we journey across the pond. This weekend we celebrated our 30th birthday with dear friends. If you’ve been reading for a few years you may remember our friend Chris who we requested prayer for as he faced cancer, fought through major surgery & reconstruction, and then endured high concentrations of chemotherapy. He is a childhood friend of ours and we are so grateful for the Lord’s preservation of his life and health… and for the gift of Katie, his beautiful bride! Chris is from Louisville, KY {like us!} and {like us!} found himself an Alabama spouse and they now live in Chicago, which means we, unfortunately, don’t get to see them as often as we’d like. Katie has become a friend to us and we are so glad to now have her in our lives. Last year we had a wonderful time at their wedding in Charleston and since then have been planning on meeting up for a little rest, relaxation and reunion at the beach! Erika took the reigns and made wonderful reservations for us, both for accommodations and food.
As much as I want to share all the details of our wonderful weekend I want to sleep more! So, I will be concise as I can. We were beach-side most of Friday, missed our check-in and ended up barely making it to our reservation at the beautiful Caliza in Alys Beach; not in the attire we had hoped to wear {ie swimwear} but once we were there we didn’t care. The atmosphere was incredible and we didn’t mind being make up-less, salty, sandy, and sticky… we were just glad to be there…. it is BEAUTIFUL… isn’t it? We sat at the table at the very left and sat right next to some friends celebrating their 10th anniversary {congrats Steve & Kristen!}.
Saturday was another perfect day and there was no sign of oil on the beautiful beaches of South Walton County. Despite Erika bringing approximately 112 bottles of SPF we all got a little more sun than anticipated. Which means we spent most of Saturday in the water or under our umbrellas. We went in early and headed to Rosemary before dinner to meet up with a good friend from college. Erika has seen Laurin several times in the last few years in her journeys to and from Memphis but I hadn’t seen her since my wedding and it was so fun to sit and catch up with her over a glass of wine and live music. From there we made our way to dinner at Cafe Tango where we once again enjoyed a delicious meal and great conversation… and many laughs!
Today we wrapped up the weekend with lunch {and more live music} at the Red Bar and saw Katie and Chris off. I’ve packed and repacked my suitcase and I’m still hoping Erika’s packed some things for me to wear in hers! We also saw Justin off and he’s back with Mom, Mimi and the rovers… and I’m missing him and the kids already!
Thank you, Sister for a wonderful weekend, I love you, Happy 30th Birthday to you…. can’t wait for our next adventure, which reminds me… I need to get in bed!
. Enjoy your time away and try not to miss Justin and the rovers too much – they are in GREAT hands and you’ll be back before you know it – to share with all of us hopefully 
