Smiles, everyone...

Wow, I am just...SUPER-behind on the old blogging, here. In my defense, I have been a wee bit busy. (I'm practicing a new thing, "under-exaggerating"...do you like it? Or is it too subtle, buried as it is under the heaping mounds of sarcasm? Eh, maybe I should just go back to my specialty: unapologetic hyperbole...) With the packing-extravaganza, the road-tripping mania, and then unpacking-palooza (not a Summer festival you ever hear about, as it's unpopular...poorly attended...and pretty much "the opposite of fun"...) I haven't had time to breathe, much less...be creative and whatnot. (Except maybe about stuff like "where do you want the toaster oven"? Or "have you seen my sneakers"?) However, everything is now put away in the new house--and yes, we've been here since...yesterday...and also, my middle name IS in fact "obsessive-organizer". But I can make absolutely no promises about being able to put together a coherent thought...here goes nothing...

So, let me nutshell this baby for ya: the recent WestEnders Farewell Tour was unequivocally awesome. First there were several coffee dates. (It turns out that sugar and caffeine do in fact dull the pain of leaving good friends...who knew?)There was the Official Goodbye Party, attended by select family members and many old friends. (The funniest thing about this event was that, while the adults chatted, laughed, reminisced, and sipped grown-up beverages, all of our children--who of course didn't exist when we met each other--ran amok in the yard, throwing balls, climbing on the playground set, and generally amusing themselves. Ah, how times have changed...) Then came my last Showcase with my Jazz Ladies (And let me tell ya, there's no bond quite the same as the one forged by wearing matching sequined costumes and prancing around on stage together. You heard it here first...) Next a soccer-mom friend wanted to meet up one last time, so I suggested a Friday night drink. She asked if we could include the husbands, and when I agreed, she executed a surprisingly sneaky move, by inviting several other parents from the team. (So now I'm thinking "Soccer Happy Hour" should definitely be a "thing"...hmmm, maybe I'll have to commit myself to unselfishly blazing that trail...)

All-in-all, it was a week full of lovely memories with very special people who I will always cherish...even if I don't see them quite as often. I mean, c'mon--there were hugs, there were presents...all that was missing was a victory lap around the stadium for me to feel as celebrated as a retiring Cal Ripken, or something. Of course, some of our loved ones have already decided that Team WestEnders needs to continue their tradition of throwing a December Holiday Party...the Southern Edition...so here's to fondly remembering the old stories....and continuing to create new ones!