this weekend in a nutshell: no plans < plans

my best friend jennifer [and partner in crime] called after work friday reminding me of the annual girls ‘spring fling’ party at a mutual friends house. so i ditched my workout plans, and instead spent the evening surrounded with friends, food and nonstop laughs. we all ended up parading over to our local watering hole and staying entirely too late. i saw so many old friends, and it was one of those nights you just couldn’t plan if you tried.

needless to say, i was in no shape to participate in my saturday morning group workout, so i stayed in bed until it was time to meet jamie for lunch. we had such a nice time catching up on each others lives and it was long overdue.

i got a call from my sisters in wilmington after lunch, suggesting i drive down for our friend cody’s birthday. after mulling it over for a minute, i ran home, threw some clothes in a bag, and arrived just in time for his hawaiian themed birthday party. we chowed down on grilled wings and jello shots, bahama mama’s and a jello shot ‘cake’, had karaoke in the garage and a campfire in the back yard, took pictures of our famous ‘i’m shy’ pose and shared so many laughs my cheeks hurt.

we were in bed by midnight and up by nine to grab breakfast at bojangles before marta headed off to work. em & i painted our nails on the deck and read trashy magazines before meeting cody at our favorite mexican restaurant for cinco de mayo beers and the best food around.

i headed home later on, and a ‘quick stop’ to see my guy on the way home  ended up being an overnight visit and early to bed sharing our weekend stories. and while i woke up exhausted this morning, i can say without a doubt that it’s some of the most fun i’ve had in a long time.

moral of the story? when life gives you opportunity to be spontaneous and spend time with those you care about most, drop all the excuses and just go.

last night, natasha cooked an authentic cuban meal for all of us — and it was the jam. she is an amazing cook! we had pork empanadas, fried plantains, and rice+beans. it was all so delicious.

grace brought dessert — a light, fluffy cheesecake with strawberries — that had us all [i know i wasn’t the only one…] going back for seconds. 

throw in a few bottles of wine, great stories, and lots of laughs and you have yourself a perfect night. thanks, ladies, for being the highlight of my week! you’re fabulous.

these gals, they’re my gals. [through & through]

(Source: nmattea)