Another Retreat

From reading my blog, you might be tempted to think I spend my life hopping from one retreat to another, and while this is partially true, there are a lot of other things that fill up the moments in between. Those other things just don't give me as much to fill up the white space on a blog. I mean, who really wants to read about my adventures in freshman math homework? Or my travelings to and from piano lessons? Although the time I got lost for two hours somewhere in the Redmond, Washington farmlands might prove for good reading. All I can say is Thank GOODNESS for books on CD. And thank goodness my son is a virtual saint and doesn't mind being picked up an hour late. And thank GOODNESS he had the good sense to walk to the nearest place of business so the piano teacher didn't get to learn about my ditsyness!

But getting back to my obsession with conferences, retreats, seminars, or anything that says, "Come and partake of something great!" It's fair to claim that I'm a junky. My friend *Marnie is too. Our most recent escapade was a trip to Time Out For Women, presented by Deseret Book. We hopped in Marnie's car and headed for Portland last weekend for a ladies' getaway.

"Road trip" takes on a new meaning when it's with a great friend (and no one's whining, "How much longer?"). And even the rain in Portland didn't dampen our spirits as we trekked through the streets searching for a great spot to eat the second night.
We settled on Jake's Famous Crawfish. Imagine our delight when our meanderings landed us at the doorstep of one of Portland's oldest and most favored restaurants. We enjoyed a delicious seafood dinner before returning to our room for the night.

The highlight for me, though, was the conference itself. The theme centered on Hope, yet I heard tales of struggle, trial, and even tragedy from nearly every presenter. It was how they faced these tradegies with hope intact that made it such a beautiful and meaningful experience.

We arrived home just in time for me to attend church with my family. A little over an hour later I was called to be the Primary President of our ward. Retreat OVER!

*Name changed to protect the innocent. But you know who you are Marnie!