Raising Arizona

I've returned from my girl's trip to Arizona and just now catching up on my blog. My mom is here playing Barbies with Pea and Babe H so I have a span of time in which to capture your attention and purge my tumultuous thoughts. This past weekend was filled with laughter, drinks, girl talk, and yummy food! A godsend, really. But in more ways than one. In some ways it has been one of the most spiritually reflective weekends in years for me. Spending time with girls who have seen you fall, pick yourself back up, go in different directions, and choose to love each other through our differences. I've come to respect the fact that as you grow older your own worldview deepens, solidifies, and does not necessarily remain the same as those you consider "cut from the same cloth." Truly, that is the term I'd use to describe our friendships. Whereas I used to see that cloth as all one color, I can now discern patterns and textures that I didn't see before. That does not mean they weren't always there, it just means the cloth is stronger than I expected in some points, still weaker in others; beautiful in an imperfect way.
Despite my serious tone, I haven't laughed that hard since some seriously funny events during our Bell Monopoly Wars in Hawaii. Some random things I loved about seeing my girls were:
-Ashley and Dan's dog Billie. Who was the sweetest bitch in the world...she gets to go to work with Dan every day.
-Seeing firsthand my first "husband's" life, love, and job.
-Meeting A & D's good friend Harry; a Jewish man who chemically straightens his hair, owns a pet rabbit named Domino (who has eaten the majority of his apartment carpet), and claimed there were 7 books in the Torah. When I very politely corrected him the conversation really took a downward turn thereafter...that's him with the horribly dressed gal in the most awesome picture of Ash ever.
-Naomi's hoped for, deserved, and delivered marriage proposal (Congrats Nay and Peder!)
-Nay's humor; we are so in sync.
-The cotton candy.
-The sun.
-Dynamic conversations.
-Quality time with Kat on the airplane; I love talking to you more than you know. Your manner is so peaceful, on target, and you are so funny.
-The matted mullet.
And finally, to life lived in separate togetherness. I love you, my animals.