Or Yaki-Vegas. Or “The Palm Springs of Washington”.

This year, the brainy one (Bekah) suggested we all rendezvous in Yakima, due to it’s even proximity to our respective homes. Carey and Holly come from Spokane, Bekah, from Seattle and yours truly from Portland. What a smart gal she is.

I arrived on Friday afternoon after a super disorienting 3-hour drive. I pulled over after 50 minutes at a Chevron to lean my seat back and take a much-needed, open mouthed power nap. I set my alarm for 15 minutes, gulped the last of my sh*tty gas station coffee and fell right asleep. My alarm must have not worked because I set it for the next day malfunctioned because i woke up what I surmise was an hour later, sweaty and with cotton mouth. Friday night we had a bunch of wine, crackers, cheese and sassafras ala Holly Coleman Erickson.

Anyweez Saturday we all woke up and did our usual go-around-the-circle-and-fill-eachother-in-on-life-updates. We’re all in such fun, awful, amazing, hard and unexpected phases of life. We have kids, marriages, divorce, careers, broken hearts, insecurities,  and make all kinds of #lifechoices everyday. And while we’re on the topic…

Can we ALL get off ALL our high-horses for a sec and just accept one another? Nobody’s #lifechoices are any better than anyone elses. They just ARE. Chicks (dudes too, I guess. but girls are def worse) have a tendency to compare, judge and then feel this impulsive need to justify. To this I say, “keep it cool my baby”. GOD KNOWS I have made some questionable decisions in my life. I am 32 years old – not married and have no viable spawn. Haha spawn. But like, it’s all ok. Do like the bumper sticker says and Coexist! Speaking of bumper stickers, where did the “My kid beat up your honor student” one go? That got me errrr time. Oh right – bullying. And cyber-bullying. That’s where. Well anyways, it always gave me a little chuckle ;).

So we talked about our #lifechoices, patted eachother on the backs and reassured one another that we’re all doing okay. And THAT, is what friends are for. Well that, and having people that still love you after you admit that despite your best efforts, Monte Carlo (starring Selena Gomez ) is STILL one of your favorite movies.

So then, Megan, my Mom and Tate came over to play!

We went to lunch at Creekside where I had a vodka + lemonade that was SO refreshing.

After lunch, my fam hit the road back to the Tri and us gals decided to do a little wine tasting in downtown Yakima. Holly and I did our usual on the way to the tasting rooms:

It was also Cinco de Mayo, so basically, we were four white girls in our dusted-off wedges and H&M best, tromping around while polka music played, trying to find a classy-ass tasting room. We did! And the tasting room lady became our BFF and I laughed so hard that wine very nearly came out my nose.

At the next tasting room, we ordered bacon-wrapped figs while we contemplated getting best friends tattoos. I still can’t bring myself to do it and suggested matching necklaces. My idea was met with disapproving faces, so I might have to succumb and get a little anchor on the bottom of my foot (which the only possible place I would ever get a tattoo).

We had dinner at the happenin’ spot in Yakima, a place called Cowiche and it was PROM so we of course reminisced our own school dances. I contributed the memory of wearing BROWN nylons to homecoming make my legs look tan and the shoes I spray-painted to match my dress the night before STUCK to my nylons and I couldn’t take my shoes off so I was the girl that had her shoes on the whole night. I also had red, curling ribbon in my hair. *DROPS THE MIC

Dinner was delicious but the cupcakes we had back at the house were better. We literally inhaled them, tried desperately to stay up later and have another glass of wine but we all ended up pouring it back in the bottle in favor of puttin’ on our cold cream and hobbling into bed with our old lady bodies.

I left early the next day with a heavy heart. IF ONLY THESE GIRLS COULD LIVE IN PORTLAND.

My life would be complete ♥