About a week after Simon left on his mission I went on a four day girls trip to Pismo Beach. I had never been there before and was both excited for a new locale AND a chance to see my friends. Most of these ladies are from the town we used to live in; we don’t all get a chance to see each other often. The month leading up to Simon’s mission farewell was busy and stressful so this trip came at the perfect time for me. A bonus was that we were able to celebrate Leah’s 40th birthday together!

We spent a lot of time around various fire-pits at the hotel, talking and laughing and legit crying. It all ended up being therapeutic; we all needed it.

Pismo Beach is just gorgeous. Like I said, this was my first time there so I’m not sure what it is like in the summer but in late September it was moody and overcast and very cool. This is my recipe for the perfect beach weather.

We had a great time celebrating Leah with a dinner near our hotel one night. The whole restaurant sang Happy Birthday to her!

We spent a day at Solvang and it was great! My friend Megen loves Solvang so I heard about it from her for years and always wanted to visit. We enjoyed yummy treats (although none for me because I was still in the middle of my 75 Hard program), shopped for Christmas ornaments and just enjoyed strolling around. The weather was perfect and with the crowds it felt as close to a normal tourist situation as I have experienced since the beginning of the pandemic. I would go back here again for sure.

Leah, Melissa and I followed up our Solvang time with a quick stop at the local Ostrich Land which was random and bizarre and awesome. I highly recommend the stop.

I am lucky to have the best friends spread out all over the country. There is never enough time to have all of the conversations we want to have with the people we love but carving out time here and there is always worth it. I love these ladies and am so glad that we were able to spend time together. Thanks for turning 40, Leah 🙂