Going Separate Ways.
The five of us met in English class our freshman year of high school. Though we remained friends we went our separate ways, choosing different colleges, careers and cities. We usually managed to see each other over the holidays, when everyone came home to Kansas City. One year, someone suggested spending a weekend together in Chicago. So we did. And we had so much fun we promised to make it an annual tradition.
20 years, 18 cities, 6 marriages, 7 children, 5 40th birthdays and uncountable professional and physical moves later, we recently celebrated our 20th Girls Trip in Savannah, Ga.
Out of the Way.
Giovanna, Katie, Linda, Nancy and I couldn't be more different women, reflected by our careers as a chef, nurse, aerospace engineer, retail expert and advertising executive. From San Diego to Cape Cod and from San Antonio to the North Shore of Lake Superior, our Girls Trips have taken us places we would never have visited without each other.
Instead of touring a big winery in Napa Valley, we stomped grapes for a boutique winemaker. Instead of visiting the Statue of Liberty, we shopped in New York City's Diamond District. We've attended a performance at the Kennedy Center and we've spent a day at the Sauerkraut Festival. Always, we explore out-of-the-way restaurants and fresh, farmers markets instead of another chain. (If you can, make friends with a chef!)
Together, we joke, we make the Perfect Woman. But the truth is, we're Every Woman.
Showing the Way.
Has it been easy to plan our Girls Trip every year? No. Kids, jobs, budgets and schedules will always remain a challenge. But as our family and friends continue to support us, I sincerely want to pass along that encouragement to others. I want to create a forum for women to share ideas and ask advice. I want to build a community in which women feel instantly comfortable. And as we live our roles as mothers, wives, daughters and professionals, I want to remind us all of the joy of being a girl.
