Tuesday, October 20, 2009

The Absolute Necessity of Having Girlfriends

After being home from a ten day trip to Colorado for all of four days I left again. That's enough time to do laundry, pay any bills that caused utilities to be shut off, throw out slimy vegetables and furry food, and sleep in your own bed. At least that's what I told myself.

What started with a group of four women has grown to about seven, sometimes eight; women who have shared enough of life that we are bound together, regardless of differences in our life situations. We've started a tradition of getting together for birthdays, and once in awhile somebody finds a way for us to get away for a night or two to a cabin or condo or such. One of our friends had just finished building a beautiful cabin in the mountains near here, and she invited the gang up to celebrate a birthday.

Some went for two nights, some of us were only able to join for one night. We took tons of appetizers, bottles of wine, plenty of desserts which might have been mostly chocolate, junk magazines, chick flicks, comfy pjs and that's about it.

It rained the entire time we were there;
we didn't care.

We all came home tired.
We weren't there for sleep.
We might have all gained a bit of weight.
That's just the sign of a successful girl trip!



I'm beginning to feel like I've learned a lot about friendship in the past fourteen years here in PA, and I owe my thanks to this beautiful group of women.

Thank you, Cathy, Becky, Carol, Lisa Beth, Robin and Karen for making life rich and fun and full to overflowing with the blessing of friendship. And for not wearing makeup the entire weekend.

Here's a great recipe that Carol brought to share; we could not stop eating it! Funny, I was planning to make it today and was in the grocery store without my copy of the recipe, wondering if I was remembering all the ingredients - ran into Carol who was there, recipe in hand, shopping for the ingredients to make it for weekend guests. I'd forgotten the red pepper and the red onion. You're going to love it - it's perfect for watching fall football.

Texas Caviar:

1 can pinto beans (the least offensive, BTW) drained
1 can black beans, drained
1 can corn, drained
1 red pepper, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 red onion, diced fine

Mix together in a bowl then make the marinade:

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil

Dissolve sugar in vinegar. tir constantly while adding oil. Pour over bean mixture. Refrigerate overnight. Drain excess liquid before serving. Use scoop style chips to eat it up!

7 comments:

dianne said...

Looks like fun. I make that cowboy caviar a lot - always a hit. works with just a bottle of dressing (italian or caesar) in a pinch too.

Dana said...

I absolutely LOVE this post! My mother has a group of friends that she does this with. They go off for a weekend or more and just laugh until their sides hurt. It's really a blessing for her.

By the way, what is in the glass in top picture?

I plan on trying that recipe too! :)

Blessings, Dana

Dawn said...

What a great tradition. I'm envious that you find the time. I think DH would be at a loss if I did that. He is a great help and very proficient on his own, but not real good on planning for child care arrangements.

Kelly said...

I will not covet, because we aren't supposed to:-) but I will say that I would adore a similar getaway with such good friends! Looks like the perfect weekend, and I am now craving that appetizer... it is my all time favorite.

Are they now planning lakeside getaways to Texas in the future?

Gretchen said...

I echo Kelly. Do not covet. Do not covet.

Okay.

It's funny you mention that recipe. About a year ago exactly, I was in Iowa, visting family. We had Texas Caviar. And i remember loving it so. I think i even wrote down the recipe. Thanks for the reminder. Delicious, and not terribly bad for us--except for the chips, but life is for living, no?

Dana~Are We There Yet? said...

Working on plans for a Girlfriends Gabfest Getaway, and it looks like we could take a lesson from you ladies! So much fun, and such a necessity.

Barb said...

Such fun, Bev. You and your girlfriends really know how to celebrate a birthday the right way!

The Texas Caviar sounds amazing. And easy. That combination works for me. :-)