Continued...

 Kicking off our Girls' weekend, we lounged pool side and sipped coffee. Going over the "Itinerary" that Mr. Hubby left her, she read out what he had scheduled for us. 

"We have mani-pedis at NAMTI Spa at 1:00. So we should leave town by 12:30..." 

"That means I have to scratch off my Color Street..." I interjected. I never get my nails done at a salon. I am a loyal Color Street customer. Every two weeks I scratch off and replace the "nail stickers" as my daughter calls them.  

I hopped out of the pool and started the nail sticker removal process.

"Then we have a card reading at Mystical Bazaar at 3..."

"I've never had my cards read before," I called out from the edge of the pool. 

"Neither have I, and I've lived here pretty much my whole life." 

Sedona is known for its plethora of Crystal shops and psychics. So the fact that we had both lived there for as long as we did and never had a reading was significant. 

I was impressed that Mr. Hubby's Gifts were so spot on. I thought even though it was an inconvenience to remove my Color Street nails, I was glad he booked Mani-pedis over massages. At least we could sit and talk to eachother instead of being in different rooms. 

"Then we have Elote Reservations for 5:30!"

"Yay!!! Elote!!!" I clapped in gratitude for those reservations. 

Elote is where Bestie and I met. She was a server, I was the hostess. She and I were expecting our first kiddos when we worked there together. We went to the same birthing classes together. Then when our kids were born, we were frist time moms together. But it's all becuase we worked at Elote. So going to Elote has such a special meaning for both of us. 

I couldn't belive the day Mr. Hubby had planned for us. We needed to do this right. It's Covid, and we have one shot at a fabulous Girl's weekend! We went back to Bestie's house after we finished with the pool. We played dress-up from her closet. After zipping and unzipping, buttoning and unbuttoning, we finally landed on the "Mrs. Maisel" dresses. (She and I were both watching this show on amazon prior to the trip.) The outfits were a pair of 1960's inspired dresses that had been gifted to Bestie once upon a time. She had never worn them, nor taken the tags off them. So it was like putting on a new dress.

Our first stop was brought us to NAMTI spa. 

*Mani-pedis included champaign and chocoloate. Socially distanced and still able to chat.*

We headed next door after our nails were shined and our feet scrubbed. At Mystical Bazaar, we were greeted and taken into the back room for our readings. We both enjoyed getting some insight into what life had brought to us.

Once we finished, we had time to spare before our reservation at Elote. 

I decided that since I was visiting the birth place of Fun Dollars, what better thing to do than to visit my old haunts? We headed first to the outlet store in Sedona, Beall's. I spent many a Fun Dollar there. I found Judith Leiber Sunglasses, new boots and new black flats. I also scored some air buds, which I had been avoiding buying. I stuck to my old-school headphones for long enough. 

Then we headed to Tlaquepaque. This was a dream come true. Strolling through the brick-paved walkways dressed like Audrey Hepburn and turning heads everywhere we went. 

We stopped in at Caravan Jewelry, right next to the entrance to the chic eatery Rene. When I lived in Sedona, I worked for the owner of Caravana Jewelry. I assisted with the creation and manufacturing of some of the jewelry on display in the shop. Sometimes, I would get to take the new merchandise to the store and add it to the displays. I always loved doing this becuase of my background in fashion merchandising. (I love doing diplay work.) 

I picked up a pair of earrings I had always wanted. I decided to buy them and wrap them to give to myself as a Hannukah present. 

I also purchased a "Snowflake" ring. Besides the name being awesome, I love these "Snowflake" rings becuase they are all different. No two look alike. I tried all of the rings on, until I found one that fit. 

We left Caravana Jewelry and waltzed around visiting shops. We had to be careful where we wandered, though. There were three weddings going on while we were there and we had to dodge the camera patrol. We were diverted and shushed along with the thongs of tourists away from the wedding sites and photoraphers. 

Bestie and I finally found a place where we could have our picure taken that wasn't in the line of sight of a wedding photographer. 

   

And then...

It was time....

For ELOTE....!!!!

At their New Uptown Location! (behind the Matterhorn.)

!!!!!!!!

I had the Lamb!!!!

Meat that fell off the bone with the slightest touch...

And of course...The Cadillac Margarita....

Thanks, Mr. Hubby! (Also he was our server.) 

(Also, we did get a VIP tour of the new kitchen...with Jeff...you know...the owner...no big deal...)

 

Our night ended with a cruise through Red Rock Country.  With the windows rolled down we rocked out to Fergie's Glamorous, and some other old Black Eyed Peas songs from our "dance party" days. The stars flooded the sky,  and I could not have felt more gratitude than in those moments spent with my Bestie. 

The next day found us doing Zumba on the Red Rocks and Meeting up with Bestie's Friends and Family. 

We finished the night in Old Town Cottonwood. With Bestie's parents and a few other old friends, we ate dinner at the Tavern then stayed around for the Park N' Cruise. Bestie's Uncle Jeff set up their classic rock cover band just outside the Tavern. They played Long Train Running and Born on the Bayou while we danced out hearts out. The classic cars were driving up and down the street, a few were parked, and it felt like it could have been 1968. Old Town has that old vintage vibe, and it was the perfect place to end the Surprise Bestie Birthday Weekend. 

So, why am I just now sharing this story? This all happened back in September. I am sharing this now becuase of the present I bought for myself at Caravana Jewelry. Not the earrings that I set aside for my own Hannukah present, but the Snowflake ring that I wear every day. This ring is my go-to every day to remind myself of what I am capable of. It gives me hope and inspiration when I feel otherwise depleted. The idea behind Hannukah is to remember that we have light within us always, even when we feel like the oil in our lamp is gone, depleted, we have to find a way to "keep burning". The Snowflake ring is that reminder. I can keep going. I do have it in me. No matter what happens, I know I can take care of myself. This ring was purchased with my Fun Dollars on a trip I paid for (twice) to visit the person I know I can lean on no matter what. The Ring reminds me of how far I have come professionally. I used to work for the person who designed this ring, but I dreamed of  coming home and not having to live in Sedona. While I was there, I was able to enjoy the dream. but then go home to my reality. I was so happy to come home to my kids after the perfect weekend with my Bestie. This ring reminds me of those two beautiful points of light I get to come home to every night...my kids...

I should be so blessed. 

That is my light. 

That is my reminder. 

Happy Hannukah.

Mozel Tov. 

The Birthday Wish

This past August as school started up again and the world slowly opened back up, I had a moment of severe impulse. 

My best friend (who lives two time zones away) had left me a video message on Marco Polo. She was showing me the house where she and her boss (with the same birthday) were going to have a joint birthday pool party. After the video tour of the Air B&B, she finished her message by telling me what she really wanted for her birthday. 

"I just wish you would be my sneaky best friend and fly out here and surprise me for my birthday, " were her exact words. This was a month before her 35th brithday. When I heard those words in the message I answered out loud, even though she could not hear me (becuase I was not recording) "Challenge accepted." As her best friend I have been "sneaky" before and surprised her twice previously for other birthdays. So, this was not out of the realm of possibility, but highly unlikely to happen. With Covid still present and considering the fact that I had already paid for a "Dream Vacation" this year, she really didn't expect me to fly out and surprise her for her birthday. It was a wish...

What Bestie didn't know was that I had plenty of Fun Dollars in my account after my Hogwarts adventure to take a trip out to AZ and make her wish come true. It would be my Crowning Acheivement with Fun Dollars; pay for a trip out of my extra and return to the birthplace of Fun Dollars to tell the story of a perfect Grils' Weekend. 

The day after hearing the birthday wish, I proceeded to contact Mr. Co-Parent to see if he would stay with the kids if I flew out to surprise Bestie. Since he is the reason she and I met in the first place, he was more than happy to oblige. He agreed to come stay at my house while I was gone so that the kids could go to school. 

After that confirmation, I booked my flight. I was set to arrive on the day of her birthday and pool party.

I then conacted Bestie's mom to let her know that I intended to fly out to surprise daughter for her birthday. I have known her mom for as long as we have been friends. She was so happy to hear of my plan. I needed someone our in AZ to be my contact point while I worked out the details of my trip. 

Since we still had a month before the actual birthday, I didn't want to contact Mr. Bestie's Hubby quite yet. There was too much time for it to "slip" and the surprise to be ruined if I told the person who actually lived with her and saw her everyday. I couldn't risk it. I decided to wait until a little closer to time before letting Mr. Hubby in on the secret. 

Next I emailed Bestie's Boss (the one who was sharing the birthday party). I wanted to see if Bestie was scheduled to work that weekend, and if so, could I just tag along? I didn't want to fly from IL to AZ during Covid if she was going to wrork all weekend. I wanted to make sure we were able to spend time together whether or not she was working. 

Her boss was so cool about it..She gave Bestie the entire weekend off! (Of course, when the day came that Bestie saw her birthday weekend work shedule, she was so excited that she had the whole weekend off. She told me about it in another vidoe message. I had to just smile and nod, and not let on as to why she had the entire weekend off...)

A little over a week after purchasing my flight, I recieved a text. 

"Can I fly you out here for your bestie's birthday?" came the message from Mr. Bestie's Hubby. 

I seriously almost fell out of my chair. In all the years that I have known this man he has loved his wife dearly, but has not lived up to her expectations for gift giving. Hearing him offer this gift, the gift of giving his wife some time with her best friend for her brithday, I was so touched. It was very hard for me to not share this with Bestie. I very much wanted to tell her that her hubby was already thinking of her and her birthday. Not only that, but he literally came up with the ideal gift all on his own! 

So, my answer was bitter sweet. I felt bad that he couldn't do what he wanted to do for his gift, but I really did need to let him know what I was up to at this point. 

"Well...I just bought tickets last week, actually," was my very meek answer. 

He said he would set something up for us to do together as a fun surprise. He asked if there was anything specific that I wanted to do while I was visting. I told him I deffinitely wanted reservations at Elote Cafe (at their new location). Elote is where Bestie and I worked when we became best friends. Mr. Hubby actually works there now, so it was not a problem to get that reservation on the books. 

Another week  by and I talked with Mr. Co-Parent to confrim the logistics of childcare and my trip. I had forwarded him my flight details so he would have them. 

"You do realize that flight leaves at 8:30 PM right?" he said in a metter-of-fact way. My heart skipped a beat. 

...

"...no..." I said,  "I'll call you back."

I hung up the phone and immediatly searched flights for the day of the pool party. I found one that left at 11:00 a.m. my time and landed at 4:20 AZ time. This would put me arriving at the party at...6:30 p.m! Perfect! (Of course, this was assuming there's no traffic or wildfires on the trip from Phoenix to Sedona.) I bought the ticket then called Mr. Co-Parent back. 

It was in this moment when I realized that I could not put a price on my friendship. I could have just given up the endeavor and ate the cost of the first ticket. (There was just no way I was going to travel somewhere and reach my destination at 2 in the morning, which would have been the case with the first ticket.) 

I could have just bought a one-way ticket just to make sure that I got there, but I wasn't certain that my original ticket would get me back if I didn't use it as my arriving flight. I also did not want to try to call a customer service line and wait on hold to get the ticket sorted out. The one flight that would work might get booked while I was on hold. 

So in that instant, I decided, my friend was worth every penny of a second round-trip flight just to ensure that I am able to see her and surprise her for her birthday. 

We are that kind of close. Like sisters. 

The day finally came for me to fly out and "surprise my bestie for her birthday." I did not get tired of saying that in the airport. It brought a smile to all the masked faces. I told everyone I met what I was up to. 

I arrived ahead of schedule and Bestie's dad picked me up curbside at the same time my flight was supposed to be landing! We were out of the city with only 7 minutes of back-up on the 101. 

We arrived in Sedona right on time. Her mom met us outside the house at the pool party and told us where Bestie was in the house and that she was occupied.

I stayed behind while her mom and dad went in and had Bestie close her eyes. 

Her dad asked her, "What do you want more than anything for your birthday?" 

She didn't answer truthfully becuase she was put on the spot. She told me later that she really wanted to say, "To see Rachael" but she knew that wasn't a real possibility, until...

"On the count of three, open your eyes; One, Two, Three..."

And as everyone said three, I positioned myself right in front of my bestie's face. She opened her eyes and...

It was one of those moments I will never forget. She cried, we hugged, it was magical. 

right after I arrived

and...

The entire weekend only got better from that point on!!! 

Remember what I said about Mr. Hubby planning something for his wife for her birthday?

Well...

The day after the pool party was Mr. Hubby's Gift Day. Bestie and I woke up at the pool party house (the Air B&B) and took a dip. 

And that is how we kicked off the Perfect Girls' weekend Sponsored by Fun Dollars...

to be continued...