Our Beachside Life: Scrapbooking and Old Friends

When I got the e-mail from Cathy (my friend from New York) a few months ago about a scrapbook weekend in Pennsylvania at the end of March, I didn't think it would work out. I mean, Brock had just taken a new position at Autodesk and I had already planned to go to Vegas with him two weeks before the proposed scrapbook weekend. That is a lot of traveling for a stay-at-home mom! :) But the stars aligned and it all worked out. When I realized that the trip was going to be a reality for me, I called my friend, Jamie, who was one of my neighbors/co-workers in Colorado, but now lives in PA, to see if she would be interested in going to the retreat with me. And of course, she was! It had been four years since we had seen each other so we were both excited about the whole thing. She invited her sister, Carrie, to go as well. Which was great because I had heard a lot about her, but we hadn't met in person before.

I flew to Harrisburg on Thursday, where Carrie picked me up at the airport and drove me to Jamie's, which is about an hour or so from Harrisburg. Jamie had invited some of her friends over for wine and appetizers. That was a lot of fun for me... I was able to put faces and names with people that I had heard a lot about and seen on Jamie's Facebook page. (**You know that we live in a different time when something like Facebook is so predominant in the way we communicate**) Anyway... let me stay on track... so I was able to meet all of these great people and they got to meet me too... it was a win-win for everyone! :) I also was able to spend time with Mike (Jamie's husband) and Carter (their adorable Cocker Spaniel). They were amazing hosts and of course they are even more amazing friends! Thanks for everything guys!!!

Jamie and I drove to East Waterford on Friday, where we met up with her sister and then drove to the retreat. We unpacked our bags in Cabin #6 - our home for the next three days. While I had envisioned a camp cabin like the ones from summer camp as a kid, these cabins were great... and very clean!

We started scrapbooking right away and had such an amazing time. Our table was made up of four 8-foot tables that we shared with Cathy and her cousin, Kari (who was the organizer of the scrapbook retreat).

(L to R - Jamie, Amy, Cathy, Kari and Carrie)

The whole retreat was so much fun... we enjoyed great scrapbooking (of course) as well as great conversation between old friends! We went until 1:30 on Friday and well after 2:00 on Saturday. Those time are AM!) Although we didn't get a lot of sleep we seemed to be functioning well. On Saturday night, we had a chocolate party and it was YUMMY!

I hope to post some photos of the pages/books that I made while at the retreat soon...

Meanwhile, here are some photos from the retreat...