November 10th will mark exactly 3 years since Liz and I met working at Elder Beerman. She worked at Clinique, and I worked for fragrances for two days before I moved on to Lancome. We hit it off instantly and became close within a very short period of time.
Yesterday was exactly 3 years since I met Nikki, who was also working at Elder Beerman. She had worked in the children's department previously, and had transferred over to the Elizabeth Arden counter. She started there the same night I started in fragrances. We became friends just as quickly as I became friends with Liz and have been super close ever since.
Nikki, Liz, and I at Liz's bridal shower, October of 2008
Nikki got married the following Spring and Liz got engaged around the same time and by Fall, they both left me in Huntington. Nikki's was living far, far away in New Mexico and Liz was up in Pittsburgh. So sad. Then, Liz got married on Valentine's Day of 2009 and shortly after that, found out she was pregnant with her little man, Mason (who will be 1 year old on Thursday). Around that time, Nikki's husband (who was in the Air Force) was transferred to Alaska, so they moved there. And I was still all alone in Huntington, one third of the 3 Musketeers (as I like to affectionately call us) by myself.
Liz and Nikki in January 2008 - we went to Epicenter and they got tattoos and I got my tragus pierced. Great bonding experience! Especially since Nikki passed out hahahahahaha.
This is a box of chocolates we poked and prodded and ate little bits of. This isn't funny to anyone but us, but there is a seriously hilarious story behind it all that I won't divulge. I really just put this here for Liz and Nikki's benefit.
So in August of last year, it was almost time for my bridal shower and Nikki very suddenly flew back from Alaska (she subsequently never flew back and divorced her douchebag husband). Two-thirds of the 3 Musketeers were back together again! But alas, our pregnant friend Liz, whose belly was growing every day, was still living in Pittsburgh.
Liz, me, and Nikki at my bridal shower, August 2009.
Then in October, I got married to Durb, which was super cool and Liz and Nikki were obviously bridesmaids in my wedding. And then this past Spring, Liz, her husband David, and their little man Mason moved to Dunbar, about 30 minutes from Nikki and about an hour from me. So awesome! Except one bad part - I'm now moving to Florida just when the three of us are back together again. But, this past Friday (which is why I went into all this information about Liz and Nikki) we got to spend the night together, drinking tons of possibly too-strong pina coladas and laughing our asses off. We also made a poor attempt at dyeing Liz's hair blonde (we actually bleached it twice and it never did get more than about two shades lighter). But all in all, we had such an unbelievably great time catching up and just enjoying the opportunity to hang out just the three of us.
Hammered off pina coladas, trying to dye Liz's hair blonde Friday night.
Saturday was one of the most unpleasant days imaginable though. I woke up after about two hours of sleep and just felt like pure horse shit. I couldn't breath through my nose, my throat was sore, and I was coughing and sneezing constantly. So, I left Liz and Mason and headed home to sleep. I managed to get in a good four-hour nap, and then had a fabulous two-hour phone conversation with my friend Adam before going back to bed again. Adam and I have been friends for about a decade, and he was a groomsman in my wedding. He was also one of the only friends to visit me when I lived in Chicago (he flew up with our mutual friend Katie and we had a FABULOUS weekend exploring the city and drinking martinis at the amazing bar Plush). We don't get to see each other a lot because he lives in Morgantown, but every time we talk or get together, it's like we've never missed a beat and it's back to us just being us. He's such a fabulous friend that I can truly talk about anything with, and he never passes judgment about anything. He's supportive, incredibly funny, an amazingly good time to hang out with, and of course, wonderful to look at. I'm blessed to have him in my life and I know we'll be friends for many more decades to come.
Adam and I on my 21st birthday - this just happens to be one of my favorite pictures of us together.
So after hardcore catching up with Adam about everything going on in our lives lately, I drugged myself up and headed to bed, managing to get 13 and a half hours of sleep. And unfortunately despite that, I still felt like pure horse shit when I woke up yesterday. But, my parents were having a going away/early Thanksgiving dinner in mine and Durb's honor, so I had to suck it up and pull myself together for that. The dinner ended up being completely fabulous because most of my family was there, and my father and sister in law also were able to make it, too. My parents even went out of their way to make sure there were vegan alternatives to my favorite Thanksgiving dishes. My mom's dressing (or stuffing as everyone else seems to call it) that she usually makes with chicken broth was made with vegetable broth instead (and it really didn't taste any different). She buys fresh loaves of bread, shreds them up, and seasons the pieces with salt, pepper, and of course tons of sage. Then she adds in cooked celery and broth, and then bakes it all. I know we're all partial to how our own family cooks, but I have to say that my mom makes the best dressing ever. My aunt even made vegan gravy to go with it, using vegetable broth for that, also. My dad, who always makes the potato salad (and it is certainly the BEST potato salad imaginable), made some for me without eggs.
Not only was the food absolutely incredible (and I love the leftovers, too), the opportunity to have my family all in one place again one more time before I leave for Florida was the best part. I don't always like everyone in my family, and we don't always get along, but at the end of the day, family is what's really important. I'm very lucky to have a huge family that likes to actually spend time together.
This week is going to be very hectic and out of control I have a feeling. Tomorrow I'm having lunch with Kim, who worked at my counter at Belk with me, then I'm going with Nikki so we can get some tattoos together. I'm getting a tattoo I've wanted for a really long time, but I'll have a whole other post for that tomorrow or Wednesday. I've got more dinners with family planned for the week, some quality time with Shelby on Friday, and Mason's 1st birthday party on Saturday. And I'll be hitting the road very early Sunday morning, so I'll try to keep up with posting this week to update everyone on how crazy it's been. Wish me luck tomorrow at the tattoo parlor!!
Kim and I at my going-away dinner with my friends from work.
Me with Lisa, Stephanie, Kim, and Arisa at my going-away dinner :)
