I Survived!

So.... I survived 2 nights away from my little beauty - even though my last post indicated that I was a blubbering mess who wasn't sure how to pick up the tiny pieces of my heart that were shattered on the ground following my farewell to Little Miss T.  I had also finished breast-feeding her just a few days prior to my going away, so it was a big week for us in many ways.

However, once I got in my car and began my journey northward, I was fine - just like you all said I would be.  Seems I don't know everything. ;)

And I had the most fabulous weekend away.  It was a long planned getaway with 4 of my favourite girlfriends with whom I enjoy a monthly bookclub soiree.  We already know we enjoy each others' company because most 'book club meetings' involve a lot of chitchat, plenty of gossip, lots of vino and delicious food, followed by a brief overview of our books; so we were all very much looking forward to this 'holiday' together!

We had had our weekend away planned for a few months and over the months had all had to reshuffle schedules to keep it locked in, but we finally got there!  We hired a house in Omaha that was close to the beach and planned to spend our days lounging and eating and doing whatever took our fancy.   Because I am with child, my darling friends allowed me the luxury of the master bedroom, with it's own ensuite, all to myself!  It felt like I was staying in a beautiful hotel.  The shower was incredible - both the size of it and the pressure of the water - and as I love to sing, the acoustics in there made me a very happy girl.  It's been a while since I've been able to sing at the top of my lungs in the shower - normally I am trying to be quiet as a mouse if I shower in the daytime whilst Little Miss T naps, hoping not to wake her; or if I shower at night, she's in bed asleep so again, I can't sing my heart out like I used to.

We arrived in torrential rain at around 6pm and were welcomed inside by one of our kin who had arrived early and spent the afternoon setting up our new digs and preparing the most incredible meal.  The remaining two ladies arrived a short while later and after marvelling at our surroundings, we got cosy and sat down to enjoy champagne cocktails (not me, I enjoyed water as I really need to drink more my midwife says!) and delicious canapes - devils on horseback, smoked salmon bites & white bean dip with crostini.  Then we sat down to a beautifully set table, complete with printed menus (see below), to indulge in beetroot risotto with french goats cheese, accompanied by Cos lettuce salad with freshly shaved parmesan and followed up with Marscapone & Vanilla Bean Semi Freddo.  Bliss!  We spent the rest of the night in front of the fire playing charades.

My one objective in going away for two nights was to make the most of the chance to sleep in, and to try and catch up on some sleep.  But as is common practice when hanging out with friends (especially if you're girls), you tend to sit up chatting until all hours of the night and midnight was my bedtime both nights.  I returned home more tired than I left.   But I had a marvellous time.

The next day, after a sumptuous breakfast of pancakes with Piako yoghurt and blue & boysenberries and poached free range eggs on toasted ciabatta with incredible streaky bacon and homemade tomato relish, we perused the local boutiques.  After browsing the stores, we returned home to enjoy a late and lazy lunch of Mexican Tortilla Stacks with guacamole and sour cream.  

After several hours sitting at the table chatting, we lounged on the sofas and then reluctantly ventured out for dinner to the Leigh Sawmill.   None of us was very hungry since it felt like all we'd done all day was eat!!

I think the thing that struck me the most after this sojourn was the things that girls talk about when there are no boys around.  We covered topics that men would never dream of discussing.  Everything from sex to cuisine, botox to business practice, make-up application to whether you prefer a top sheet or not!  Blokes may cover sex, but the rest of their conversation would only be about sports or cars I'm betting!

This wonderful weekend away with my girlies emphasised to me how important it is to enjoy time with girlfriends - whether you can take the time away and get out of town like we did, or just make a regular date to catch up with your friends.  The opportunity to be yourself - without a business identity or a child relying on you constantly, or husband or partner demanding your time and attention, or whatever your everyday pressures involve - is refreshing and necessary sometimes.  Conversation with friends and the chance to truly relax and not have to think about what to cook for dinner tonight was a welcome break for me, and although I didn't return feeling necessarily refreshed, I came home with a renewed sense of love and appreciation for my husband and daughter and some great memories.  Plus, I'm really looking forward to next year's weekend getaway!!

Thanks girls - it was a blast!