saturday

So much to write about. So many wonderful and positive things on my mind! Where do I even begin?

Our time with Ben and Dana was so fabulous. We dropped them off at the airport last night around 8:00, and I am happy to report that there were no tears! Although I really was very sad to see them go. We had a blast with them, and I learned so much from them both. Some of my favorite moments/memories are as follows:

-listening to The Album Leaf, a band Keith and I had surprisingly never heard of, on the way home from the coast, while driving through the Tillamook State Forest.
-watching the Christian Bale flip-out remix for the first time, and then countless times after.
-the yoga practices Dana and I shared at Yoga Pearl, led by the amazing Kathryn Budig.
-my Manzanita headstands, and the incredibly powerful loving encouragement the Benanas gave me, which I will never forget.

There are too many to list, really. I am so grateful for their friendship. It's so crazy to think that Dana and I met by chance, two years ago in Norfolk at a yoga teacher training. I am so happy that we've kept in touch and remained so close. I already can't wait to see them again! I think their visit made a huge impact on me, and will continue to mold me into the kind of person I want to be. Perhaps that sounds a little dramatic to you, but let me explain. Keith and I live out here with no family anywhere nearby. Having Ben and Dana out here to help set us on track as a newly married couple was a tremendous blessing. Ben hung curtains for us, which neither of us really knew how to do, Dana taught me some simple vegan recipes, and also the value of a houseplant. She also taught me that you should own six of everything, so that you can entertain two other couples, that you should nuke your sponges for a minute once a week to kill germs, how to saute vegetables, that I can throw my curtains in the dryer with a damp towel for a few minutes to get the wrinkles out, that you should always buy organic apples, or at least peel the skin off non-organic ones, that rice cakes with raw unsalted almond butter and unsweetened applesauce taste amazing, and so much more! She is like the big sister I never had. (Except I imagine if I really did have a sister, she wouldn't be into yoga and organic health foods, being that I seem to be the "different" one in my family). She and Ben are just one of the sweetest, most down to earth, kind, loving and generous couples I have ever known. I can't say enough good things about them. They are as sweet as a tiny pumpkin cupcake.

Speaking of sweet couples that I love, our camping trip with John and Julia is coming up at the end of next month! After freezing my backside off in Manzanita recently, I have definitely learned the "summer in Oregon can be cold" lesson and will be packing lots of warm clothes and blankets. There are few things worse than being cold! And as silly as this sounds, I do like to look as cute as possible, and when you find yourself layering up in whatever you can find that was randomly thrown in the trunk of the car (ie: dirty work shirt belonging to husband), you don't feel very cute. Dana came prepared, with a cute jacket and scarf, and I felt like a total dweeb. I will definitely be packing my arm warmers, scarf, jacket, Holly socks and anything else I can think that will keep me feeling warm and looking cute for the trip to Crater Lake. I'll also be waxing my eyebrows before the trip. Dana will understand that one, and so will Julia if I don't do it.

Tonight I went to the gym and had a nice workout. That was one thing I did miss when Benana was here. I think I subconsciously allowed myself a break. It wasn't that I felt like I had to entertain them constantly (though I could have, since I have six of everything!), I just skipped out on the gym more days than I would normally allow myself. But, to be fair, I did do take those intense Kathryn Budig workshops and dance/skip/gallop on the beach quite a bit. And on the flip side of that, I drank more wine than normal, too. Oh well! I had fun.

One thing I meant to mention earlier is that the Benanas and the T-Kaps (that's Keith and me) went to the Tillamook Cheese Factory on our way home from Manzanita. It was crazy touristy. Lots of screaming kids and parents and grandparents. We stayed long enough to eat some greasy food, fresh ice cream cones (mine was pumpkin and the size of my head), and do some cheese tasting. Keith was in heaven. I, however, do not like cheese very much. Actually, I'm not much of a dairy-lover, in general, but that pumpkin ice cream sure was a delight. My favorite cheese, and the only one I actually tasted, was the vintage extra sharp white cheddar. We were going to buy a block to have at home that night with some wine, but the line was about a mile long so we decided to pass. People were buying so much cheese I could not believe it. Doesn't that stuff go bad? Some of these folks had to have been spending upwards of $100 on cheese. They won't be pooping before Christmas, eating like that!

I think I may have said this a time or two before, but I have a friend in Salt Lake City who keeps a seriously entertaining blog. Check it out. www.multiculturalanimalfarm.com

I either don't have anything else to say, or I have a whole overwhelming lot of stuff more to say, I can't decide which. Either way, I think I should smother myself in lavender oil and call it a night.

xoxo-
T