Call Me Crushed, Call Me Barista

I am supposed to be in Colorado Springs this weekend. I am supposed to be enjoying all the Broadmoor, a 5 Star luxury resort, has to offer while attending a Wholehearted Mother Conference, led by Sally Clarkson, a woman who has had a profound influence over my calling to motherhood. Oh, and I am supposed to be outlet shopping.

We were so excited to go. The weather was so uncooperative. Sheets of ice and snow covered the roads in Wyoming and we went nowhere. To say we were disappointed would be a gross understatement. Call me crushed.

We were supposed to leave early Friday morning. So, instead of taking off on our adventure, we woke up sad. While thrilled that our husbands had the day off in order to be home with our kids while we were gone, and now that extra day could be spent with us too, we were very bummed and not sure what we would do to replace the lost (much needed) girl's weekend out. The temptation to sit at home and feel sorry for myself was definitely there, but didn't last long. The decision to turn to retail therapy in the company of other females (a very reliable cure for the blues) was a good one. It happened to be sidewalk sale weekend at the mall- that's almost like outlet shopping, right?? We (Natalie, Katie and myself) found some great stuff, but let's be honest, stuff can't really make you happy (well...) no, it can't really make you happy and give you peace. But fellowship with wonderful women and enjoying a day out doing something you love (shopping with no agenda) can really be a balm to the soul.

Which leads to my exciting new name. Call me Barista!



Meet Sally. Sally is my new, long-awaited, espresso machine. I've wanted one for a long time, and never found myself in need of one. Abandoned vacations leave you with extra money to spend and a reason to cheer yourself up with an incredibly fun, special thing you've always wanted to have. I've been working on perfecting my latte-making skills (and I've got mad skills) tonight. After all the sampling, I may be up for a while. Sally does a great job.

Here's to many, many lattes in the years ahead, sweet with the taste of turning something so sad into something so special, with a memory of good friends to go with it.