Fond Memories, Fun Times and 40th celebration

Many of you who read my posts here on RefreshHer have also followed my daughter, Whitney at Come Home for Comfort . Her content on her blog and in her personal life are always a joy. I’ve missed reading her posts, and I know you have, too, but we all have to know when to step back even from something we love so we can give greater attention to that which is a greater priority. I admire Whitney for that! I’m also super blessed to be a part of her life and have the opportunity to spend time with her and her husband, when he’s not working!

I had that blessing this week as my other daughter, Alli and I hosted a 40th birthday celebration this week in Pigeon Forge with just the three of us! Her birthday isn’t until September, but this was the best time for us to get away. We spent three nights and nearly four days together, chatting, laughing, eating, cooking, shopping, reminiscing and also making new memories! It was the BEST time!

The girls and I started doing what we call, “Girl’s trips” about ten years ago. We get together to celebrate when one of us is celebrating a “significant” birthday. That simply means a birthday ending in a 5 or a 0! Because of the staggering years, we get to have one of these events about every three years. What a joy! I thought I’d give you a little peek into our fun trip, that way I can relive it, too!

Since Alli and I were the hosts, we brought all the food for breakfasts and lunches. We ate at the resort where we stayed, which helped keep the costs down. Each evening we went out for dinner, and chose two favorite places, and one new one.

I wanted to do some fun “girly” kind of things to make it memorable. I purchased matching lounge pants for all of us to be comfy in each morning and evening. I found these at Walmart and we were all amazed at how soft and comfy they are!

We took things slow each day, rising to have coffee and our individual times in Bible study. How sweet that our relationship with the Lord is the thing that truly unites our hearts together. We had so many good conversations about what the Lord is teaching us from His Word and how we’re applying it to our lives.

We had so much fun shopping together. It’s always fun to “encourage” one another as we try on something in the dressing room, or discuss if this would be good for our living space. Who knows you better than your mom or sister?!

We ended our time with a dinner celebration for Whitney at Chop House. The food was amazing and the setting was perfect! Afterwards we came back to the resort for Whitney’s requested dessert of Kentucky Derby Pie.

We ended the evening by watching Parent Trap – the old version. So many laughs and hilarious moments!

Packing the car to come home created more funny memories. One happened when the girls almost took the card down the steps instead of the ramp! It was rescued in time! We shopped and ate on our way home, ending the whole trip on a high note! We came home with sighs of the memories and fun as a family. How blessed I am with two daughters that invite me to spend time with them! I don’t take that for granted! I love spending time with them, and I’m even more grateful that we will get to do so for eternity!

The trip is over, leaving us with happy sighs of fun times together. It’s with a grateful heart I look back on all our hours together. We were able to celebrate Whitney, spend slow time together, and also consider how our lives are being impactful for eternity. I pray that even as a family we can do that even better together.

If you’d like to leave a comment for Whitney, I’ll be sure she sees it!