The Girls Have It!

I just got back from my second, "annual" girls weekend at the Lake of the Ozarks. There were 8 of us, all related, who gathered at a condo to laugh, shop, eat and talk, talk, talk. It was a great time. On Saturday we visited the Spa at Tan-Tar-A, ate lunch, and then went shopping at the outlet mall. After a brief rest and hair tinsel session, we went out to eat. We hoped to go to a piano bar, but when we got there, we found out that the piano bar had been sold and was reopened as a restaurant. After supper, we went back to the condo, talked and ate some more. On Sunday, we got up early, packed up and went out for brunch. It was sad saying good bye, but we all had families to get home to.
Our group consisted of: Martha. Martha is my step-mom, role model and friend. She is 70 something, but could pass for 50. She is spry, sweet and doesn't have a mean bone in her body. She is my role model because I try, try, try to be as non-judgemental and kind as she is. Maybe someday I will make it. She is also a lot of fun!
Debbie. If you have read my blog before, you know that Debbie is my sister. She is also a lot of fun to be around. She is generous, modern and puts forth so much effort to keep our family together. I think that Debbie is the glue that binds our family. We sort of picked on her this weekend. . . and for that I am sorry (but it was just a tad bit fun!)
Kathy. Kathy is my brother's wife. She loves to laugh, enjoy some good wine and share a story or two. She came loaded down with snacks, drinks, magazines and books to share. This was her first trip to the lake with us, and I hope she enjoyed herself enough to come back next year. We really enjoyed having her.
Mindy. Mindy is the reason we started this girls weekend. She celebrates her birthday in March, and this is what she requested as a celebration. Mindy is my oldest niece. She has a loving heart and a tendency to keep any situation real. She loves to laugh and have a good time. She has a great personality and a wonderful sense of family.
Jessica. What can I say about my first born? She is smart, funny and loves to bring the party. She navigated the driving and brought the chocolate! She was fighting a sinus infection, and was worried about her husband who was at home with the stomach flu. In spite of that, she hung in with the rest of us and kept the weekend fun.
Amanda. Amanda is my daughter in law and definitely the family stylist. She loves to have a good time, and always has something nice to say about everyone. She brought the glamour to the weekend and made us all step up our game. Her energy is amazing!
Meghan. Meghan is also my niece. She is probably the relative in the family most like me. The weekend and the family trips would not happen if it wasn't for her efforts to find nice, inexpensive places to stay. She is quiet, thoughtful and sweet (okay, maybe not exactly like me). Meghan is a planner and a doer. She doesn't talk a lot about what needs to be done, she just does it.
As you can see, we have a great bunch of women to spend some time with. As much as I love the men in my life, it is just sometimes good to be with the girls. . .