Memorial Day weekend started early at our house because Eric and I were both off work on Friday. We rose early and headed to Kansas City for my friend Linda's retirement party. She's way too young to retire, but being a teacher and instructional coach in the same school district for 32 years allows her to move into this new phase of life. I couldn't think of anyone more deserving!
Eric and I rolled into KC early in the afternoon and got set up for the party before Linda arrived. So many of her school connections came to wish her well. It warmed my heart hearing so many of her colleagues talk about how she had helped them with their careers. Here are a few of the decorations I made for the event ~
Saturday morning we decided to head to the theater to see Book Club. We thought it was very cute and had some great life lessons sprinkled throughout. There haven't been many movies starring Diane Keaton that I don't like and this one is no exception. Did you see it?
We were due to arrive at Linda's brother's house by mid afternoon. Linda is the oldest of nine children so when the majority of the family get together, it's loud and FUN. I'm blessed they have taken me and my family in and we're allowed to be a part of gatherings such as this one!
There was a surprise brewing. Unbeknownst to Linda, when everyone left for church those of us that stayed behind quickly set up for another retirement party. This one was just a family affair and she was blown away when she walked in the door! The choreography of her arriving last worked out perfectly and we were all waiting on the stairs to greet her!
The cake and cookies were absolutely adorable (and delicious)! The light box Kayla and Ian gave me for Mother's Day made it's inaugural debut. I have a feeling I'm going to be using it A LOT because it's was so darn cute.
The rest of the night was spent toasting Linda, eating an amazing pasta dinner and playing games. We also drew partners for the Annual Washer Tournament being held the following day.
Let me just say - everyone needs a Linda in their life. We have been best friends since the sixth grade. We were together for all the shenanigans of grade school, high school (still surprises me we survived that), and college. There have been marriages, children and divorces. Linda has been in my life for, well, every major event of my life. And now I'm so excited to be there with her in her new phase called retirement. We have big plans!! Selfishly I'm hoping she will be able to visit more and we can take more trips together. Congratulations Linda!! We love you!!
We got down to serious washer business early Sunday morning. The metal discs were flying by 10:00 am and even though the heat index climbed to over 100 degrees, we were not going to let that slow us down!
My partner even got an esteemed "leaner"!
It was a great day of fun and the winners were crowned by 6:00 pm. Congrats to Patrick, Jordan and Margie!
Sunday night we were exhausted and were in bed by 11:00 pm. We packed in so much merriment in just a few short days!
The alarm went off early on Monday because we needed to get back to St. Louis. After stopping at my parents for a quick visit, I headed the rest of the way home and tried to get ready for the week. I know it's a short one, but man did I feel like there was much to do!
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Congrats on your friend's retirement!! I have friends I've known since the 6th grade and I hope one day I'm still friends with them after all that time! =)
ReplyDeleteHave a great day! Thank you for the linkup! Melanie |Toots + Dill Blog
Aw, that's awesome you had two parties for your friend. Congrats to her on her retirement. I hope you two can get together more. I like the idea of writing bucket list ideas or well wishes on the back of a postcard.
ReplyDelete-Lauren
www.shootingstarsmag.net
Those retirement parties sounded lovely! Linda is lucky to have a friend like you! I really want to see Bool Club but may have to wait until it's on Redbox because of the new baby. There's no time!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun weekend - the retirement party looks like a blast and so does the washer tournament!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great weekend. Good luck to your friend. Thanks for hosting and I hope that you have a wonderful Thursday.
ReplyDeleteThat retirement party looks like a blast! How fun! I'll have to check out that movie... I love me some Diane Keaton. :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful tribute to your friend and friendship.
ReplyDelete