THE ONE WITH BABY GRAVES

Last week I had the unbelievably amazing chance to visit Laura and Rusty in California. Laura and I are friends from waaaay back in the day. We met at First Church of God when I was 9 and my family first moved to Murfreesboro. We spent time bossing around our brothers, spent money on American Girl Dolls, spent a year together at FRCS, and eventually spent every Friday night together (until I moved into the MTSU dorms and she wasn't allowed!). We both ended up going out-of-state to college in the fall of 2004 and experienced our first taste of long-distance friendship. We still shared quite a bit. She and I (and Leah!) were even married the same summer. After the weddings, Darin and I established our (short-lived) home in Illinois, and Laura and Rusty began their life in California. Woah. It's a long way out there! I've been to Colorado, South Dakota, and Texas, but that's about the extent of my travels west of the Mississippi. I have been craving a trip to see Laura in Cali, especially now that she is preggo. And that's just what Mady gave me for mother's day!

I flew into LAX on Wednesday (after carefully picking my seat based on which part of the LOST crew survived), so we spent the day seeing Hollywood...

the Santa Monica Pier,

and Venice Beach (which, amazingly, I do not have a picture of). I found that Laura and I were made to be tourists together. We saw SO much so quickly in one day yet were completely satified with everything we saw. It was awesome! I was only disappointed in one thing: the famous HOLLYWOOD sign. Call it the magic of the movies or call it the un-reality of "The Bachelorette," but I had no clue it was so difficult to see! I wanted a foot picture with it, but it looked silly so far away and surrounded by so much deadness. Boo. But, everything else = SO much fun!

Thursday was spent recovering from our whirlwind tour of LA and hanging out in Laura and Rusty's super-cute home in Exeter. Friday was a big day - not only was it Leah's birthday(!), but it was also the day that Laura found out she was having a GIRL! It was such a special time to get to be out there. (Thanks for sharing, Rusty!) We celebrated with Toy Story 3-D, a yummy lunch, and "Hostess" cupcakes from "The Frosted Muffin."

Saturday, Laura and I headed to San Francisco. I LOVED SAN FRANCISCO. Loved it. It felt like Chicago to me, even though the two are very different. But the city and the water and the pier... it was all so perfect. And, again, Laura was the perfect travel buddy. We had all the same goals and opinions. I am so glad we decided to make the drive there!

My absolute favorite part was riding the cable cars! I don't really know why, but I LOVED it!

And the curvy road!

On Sunday, I got to visit Laura and Rusty's church. I really enjoyed their service and getting to see where Rusty serves as youth pastor. We had a delicous lunch with an awesome family from their church and just hung out for the day. I love witnessing life. Sunday and Monday were days for experiencing what they experience daily, and I like getting to do that. Now I can picture them in their town, church, and house!

Tuesday, Laura and I ventured into the Sequoia National Park. It was a grand God-picture and quite breathtaking. We hiked quite a bit for the two of us! And we were rewarded with the view. After a week of spending time together like we had never been apart, it was time to return to my husband and baby girl. I missed both of them SO much, and it's good to be home. I LOVE SUMMER! I'll leave you with some pictures of God's majesty...