at 337 miles round trip, it was definitely a girls day OUT

It’s a well-known fact around our house that I have a very limited amount of female interaction these days. I babysit a little girl every couple of weeks, but besides her and her grandmother, the only females I ever talk to are the ladies at church whose average age is about 72. I adore living with Christopher, but on the occasions I want to discuss bubble necklaces, summer dresses, or Reese Witherspoon blond vs. Reese Witherspoon brunette, he is unable to hold up his end of the conversation.

Yesterday was a very exciting day. I spent ALL of it with a girl.

Laura and I met in person in February when I stayed at her house on the way to Christopher’s OCS graduation. I never really blogged about it because the whole MARRIED TO AN OFFICER thing was so big, but let me tell you- it was so fun. To be sure, there were moments beforehand when I wondered if we’d sit in silence staring awkwardly at the wall all weekend, but you really bond with someone while eating two flavors of Doritos and driving around the state in search of Jon and Kate Gosslin’s house. (Aaron was not exactly helpful when I expressed concerns before that first visit. He felt the need to tell me many met-through-the-internet stories gone terribly wrong. He even went so far as to say since I had never seen her in person, she might really be a he. Or a bear. After Laura and I talked on the phone, I proclaimed to Aaron that not only had I confirmed she was female, I was positive she wasn’t a bear. He rolled his eyes all over, but he couldn’t argue when I said that BEARS DON’T TALK ON THE PHONE.)

Laura and I are only living about 5 hours apart this summer, so I emailed to ask if she’d like to visit for the day. After many messages and much studying of maps, we settled on Easton, MD. Then we switched to Chesapeake. Then we switched again to Annapolis. (I feel the process may have been easier if Google could have given a good answer to “what city is between where Laura lives and where I live?”) Third time really is a charm because Annapolis was lovely.

We walked all the way around the pier, looking in the cute little shops along the way. Within the first half hour we knew where we wanted to eat lunch which was only natural since our friendship is partly based on a healthy appreciation of food.

Walking through the doors of the Naval Academy gave me a reason to whip out my military id. I NEVER turn that kind of opportunity down. 

The academy is just beautiful. The buildings and yards are so pretty.  

I may be loyal to the Army, but I can appreciate a good Navy uniform. 

During the day I made the following random observation: somewhere along the line I have started saying “oh my WHAAARD” instead of “oh my WORD”. I hope it didn’t annoy Laura too much because OH MY WHAAARD WORD it was annoying me.

I had so much fun spending the day with another girl. She understood things like nail polish colors and importance of cute sandals. I am a fan of a good girls day out. 

I realize I look highly awkward in this picture. I managed to be unprepared even though I was the one taking the picture.