Time with Friends, Time with Family

Because jumping on the beach is fun

This weekend I’m away on my annual girls weekend at the beach. It’s a retreat that has grown to be one of my favorite weekends of the year. I think it’s so important for women to get time away. I love these women (writers from (in)courage) like sisters and the limited time we get in person is so cherished.

Yesterday, we had a great time shopping in Savannah, enjoying time together at the beach house and eating great food. Today most of the girls are going home, but a few of us are staying one more day. I am looking forward to relaxing on the beach, writing and reading. It will be the perfect way to end the weekend. (I’ll head back to Nashville early Monday morning and go straight from the airport to work.)

As glorious as this weekend has been, I’m looking forward to being with Matthew and the kids next weekend. September has been a wild month – first with Matthew in Guatemala, then me away for a few days the week after and now this beach trip. We are really craving being together.

Because we are needing some quality family time, we are heading to Disney On Ice next weekend in Nashville. They were kind enough to offer us a few tickets and I gladly accepted them. This will be Elias’s second time seeing the show and Adeline’s first. I know they are going to love it – and I’m going to love being together! The show, “Princesses and Heroes,” features all the beloved Disney characters and runs October 3-6 at Bridgestone Arena.

These two weekends are quite different, but both are equally special to me. I’m so thankful for opportunities to rest and enjoy friendships, as well as be together as a family.

Do you make time for investing in yourself? Your friends? Your family? Or are these areas unequally balanced?