I love those girls

You know how sometimes when you have a thought—you're reading a book or watching a commercial—and you have a thought. And then everything from thereon in seems to concur with that thought?

Like, for example, you see something about penguins and it makes you think about relationships. And then the next day, you're walking to work and you see a stuffed penguin in the window of the toy shop and then there's a poster for the Penguin Plunge on the place where they post posters. And then, and then... you feel like you should do the penguin plunge out of principle. Or maybe you should just work on your relationship. In any case. The world is trying to send you a message. Right?

Or it's like with my friend Elisa. Ever since we read The Picture of Dorian Gray last year in bookclub, she's noticed references to it pop up everywhere. If we never read it, would we still get those references?

I digress.

The whole reason I started to write this post tonight is because I've been feeling like half a person lately. I was kind of bummed the other night and I was talking to Col about it and he asked, "When was the last time you hung out with your friends?"

"I don't know," I said. "You're right. It's been too long. I really miss my friends."

So, at that moment, I grabbed my computer and e-mailed some of my gals and said, "Let's get together!" Within minutes a couple of them wrote back saying they've been feeling the same way. Sad, and missing the gals. My female friends.

Just give me a minute. I will get to my point.

The night after I wrote the e-mail, I went to Emi's to watch a movie. Elisa and Lauren and Heather were there too. (It was so good to see my friends!) We watched The Women. It was star-studded and kind of cute. But the most interesting thing about it was this: There wasn't a guy in the entire movie. Not even in the scenes where they were walking on the streets of New York City. Not one single man. All women.

I felt like the someone was trying to send me a message: get with your girls now.

Let me be clear: I love my man. I love my family. My coworkers. My alone time. But something about getting together with my girlfriends is so healing and so rejuvenating. We just haven't been giving each other enough attention lately.

We all hung out again together tonight for dinner. We were talking and eating and catching up, laughing and crying. So what have we all been up to? Emi's been nursing mainly and holding a newborn baby in her arms. Becky's been working hard and going to classes. Elisa's been raising a child and devising her new life plan. Lauren's been working hard and dogsitting and is taking scuba lessons and planning her next travels. I've been working and snowboarding and visiting family and planning a wedding.

But amidst all that, I've missed my girlfriends. They all left just now and we all promised to get together again next week. I really hope we do!

Some more fabulous gals:

Baby Sapphire and her mum

Mother Nature, she's been so fierce (and fabulous!) lately—that's her icing the window

Au Lait and Suki in the newly painted bedroom. I've heard female cats are harder to befriend—but look, they're sitting on the same bed now!