Retreat II: Fun Bits

ARGH! Blogger is still not cooperating with posting the pictures. I will e-mail them and see what the deal is.

Place - The camp was gorgeous! Set up in the moutains of Santa Cruz, it was such a refreshing and relaxing retreat from busy city streets and hectic noises. The ladies took my pregnant belly into consideration and did things for me I never even would have thought to ask for: the room closest to the conference center, a double mattress on my bed, and a chair beside my bed for me to sit on. Such simple provisions, and yet it truly showed how THOUGHTFUL these ladies are. And without knowing it, Tricia had provided us all with a few "extras" which included the body wash I use here at home but didn't take and the matching lotion that I've never thought to buy. And it works wonders on my itchy stretch marked belly. And what did Tricia allow me to do? Keep both the body wash and lotion! Such a small gesture, but it means so much. (I wish I could have gotten a picture of the "river" that ran beside the camp. You could hear it when you walked outside. And it was gorgeous! But too far down in a ravine and I wasn't willing to get close enough to the edge to take a picture.) :-)

Food - It was tasty! The tomato soup had a kick to it, so I couldn't finish it. As did the scrumptious chicken cheese enchilada. But boy was it all good. Funny thing though. Me, little miss Home Ec major, sat there eating the "meat" on Saturday night desperately trying to figure out if it was pork or turkey. Tasted like turkey. Looked like turkey (mostly). Didn't smell awful like pork. And it was good. So I ate it in my pride without asking what it was. But at lunch the next day I asked someone. Yep. It was pork. Did you know for years upon years I have always been soooo against pork and have told people I can't stand the stuff? But, I ate the whole silly piece on my plate and actually enjoyed it. Matt is grateful since he likes pork. Favorite food item of the weekend? The pineapple sorbet at Sunday lunch. Tricia told me I was allowed to eat a second helping because it was sorbet, not ice cream. I love it when other women help me find the excuses. :-)

Games - Zilch...not a game to play at 9:30 at night and/or if you hate math. Yuck. Scattergories - did you know there are still people out there who haven't played??? I ended up teaching a group of women (after quitting Zilch unashamedly) who had never played. The one who owned it had never even assembled it. Hoopla - I brought it and taught a group of women on Friday night. On Saturday night, I left it sitting all alone on a table while I played Scattergories, but quite a sizeable group of women ended up playing. I was glad to see their enjoyment!

Seminars - There were two beauty seminars given by Jo (face) and Monica (hair). They were quite interesting, and I was able to be the model for the basic day look make-up. It was SO much fun to see a few of the women have their hair and make-up done up. It is so amazing every time you watch someone apply make-up in such a way that it truly brings out the woman's beauty rather than "wow, look at her make-up." We even got a few samples to try at home.

So those are the fun bits of the weekend. To come are the more meaningful things that happened and what I learned. For now, I'm gonna go have a picnic lunch by the pool. It is INCREDIBLY gorgeous here, and I'm hoping to get some more R&R. Though I had a 3 1/2 hour nap yesterday and 9 hours last night, I think the weekend took more of a toll than I thought it would. For those who've prayed for my ribs...they are not as excrutiating today. It goes between a dull tenderness to the sharp pains. Haven't figured out yet what makes it hurt worse. But at least I can breath better!