Soul Friend Sam

Not everyone finds a soul friend. I lot of people find a soul mate and many soul mates get to enjoy the absolute pleasure of cultivating a soul friendship. But I'm not talking about soul mate friendships, I'm talking about my experience of a girl [me] stumbling upon another girl [Sam] and eventually realizing we had both been given rich ingredients which, when combined, could become a deep meaningful friendship. Soon after, we decided we were soul friends. [Back up a bit.] Just over two years ago when Brian and I moved to the greater Portland area it was clear that I was going to require something special in order to be able to remain there with any happiness. As always it was worthless to waste time wondering, 'Why, God, did you plop me here?' As always, God had a plan. He knew just what I needed. The answer was Soul Friend Sam. After more than a month of seeking a transfer I found Jantzen Beach: what would become my 3rd/4th (depending on how you look at it) Starbucks home. I began working there and met Sam, a fellow barista. Our shifts were quite opposite. Sam was working mid-closing shifts whereas I worked mostly opens. But when our co-worker Lisa had Baby Suther, Sam and I collaborated over our love for food and Lisa and brand new babies and decided to bring her a meal. And that's how it all began. :)
Anyway, now that I have moved to the greater Seattle area our soul friendship has had to go long distance. Despite the miles, our friendship remains and our visits are sweeter than ripe fruit eaten outside on a sunny, summer day.

Whew! Now that our history has been explained I can get to the point of the post. 

My Soul Friend came to visit!

Sam and I were beyond busy throughout her stay.

We spent a morning up north seeing friends and family. I used to belong to this hilarious little group of girls called The Bloomer Babes. It's a silly story for another day but it's what bonded my friend, Jen, and myself to one another. Jen and her husband spent the last year in New Zealand but they were back for a short time so we planned to meet for coffee. We decided to try Rustic Coffee & Wine Bar in Fairhaven. (Thank you, Jazz, for the suggestion.) We loved it! The environment was cozy, calm, and classy. The girls working were fun and made incredible drinks. Jen brought with her Nicole, Kristen, and Deborah. Nicole is Jen's sister, Kristen is a college friend, and Deborah lived with Jen's family for a year while attending high school as an International student from Mexico. I got to know Deborah through being in musicals together and writing for the high school newspaper. When our deadlines had been met (or when we were avoiding meeting our deadlines ;) Jen, Deborah and I used to go to Lynden's Cup of Tea and pick up scones and lemon curd. Oh my, they were delicious! It had been five years since I'd seen Deborah and I had forgotten how funny she is. It makes me laugh to think that Jen and I intending to catch up, turned into 6 girls, several who had never met, spending a couple of hours together talking about life, travel, diversity, God, and how confusing taking a pregnancy test can be!
(Who knew?! I'm not the only one that has been confused!)

Jen and I, happily reunited, bursting at the seams with stories. :)

Following our coffee date Sam and I went to Boulevard Park for a picnic with my mom, Tess, all four kids, and Tessa's sis-in-law and bro-in-law, Sharla and Thomas. Thomas and Sharla had just flown in from South Dakota for a visit. It was good to see Sharla again and great to finally meet Thomas. I recently hired Thomas, a web designer, to built a Mustard Tree website for my photography.
(I hope to launch the site soon, so stay tuned!)

We enjoyed playing in the park and on the beach.

From the park, Sam and I headed to downtown Bellingham. 

We popped into [sis-in-law]Amy's beautiful salon, Plum, to say hello.

I love their sign.

After dropping by Plum, Sam and I hit up Railroad Ave for a quick bit of shopping. Sticker shock chased us back to the car. :) We returned home to our pups. The rest of Sam's time here was a lovely blur of delicious, creative, and relaxing moments.

We tackled several sewing projects, some old and some new.

My laundry curtain from back in Vancouver was never quite right. Sam whipped it into shape for me.

It now hangs happily in my laundry closet.

We hemmed one curtain and sewed a couple of new ones too.

I plan to hang curtain panels in the closet opening instead of closet doors in BamBam's nursery. We used a cheap linen drop cloth from Lowe's. I'll post a pic once the ruffles are in tact and it is hung. 

(I can't wait for it to cover the current disorganization. :)

We also developed a definite plan for BamBam's mobile. It's going to have a Daddy Birdie, a Mama birdie, and a BamBam birdie. It's going to be so cute!

We also baked. This lemon berry yogurt loaf was discovered on Pinterest.

Here's the recipe. Go indulge, and don't feel bad.

 It is worth every last calorie.

On Sam's last day we went to the South Seattle ReStore. Sam's pup aka Finn's girlfriend, Chloe, came too. :) We didn't make out all too well, but it was fun and we did leave with a few simple treasures.

I'm always surprised when she leaves and I have so few pictures of the two of us together. The same thing happened last time she came to visit, but it's because we're just so ding dong busy when we're together. :) It's a fabulous problem to have.

Oh Soul Friend, thank you for coming to visit and brightening our little life.
You are a blessing and we miss you!