These Are the Moments We Remember

by Terri

I know many of us have written here about meeting up with our FOL sisters and spending some precious time getting to know each other better. But this time, this was the first time that almost all of us were able to be there. If not for Cathy’s “new hip” we would have had a 100% turnout and, believe me, she was greatly missed. But last week, on the beach in Galveston, TX, the other ten of us came together for four precious days of togetherness.

I have known since this trip was scheduled that my post would be the first one after our return and you will most likely hear much more about it all from the others once it is their turn to post. We will probably have different viewpoints and different stories to share, but I can bet that each one of us will say it was a chance of a lifetime to be able to be together.  Ten women, from different parts of the country, different ages, different life experiences, but all with the common goal to make this blog feel like home to all of you who read it. 

We had rented one huge house on the beach to spend the next four days and the excitement had been building ever since we made the plan to be together. Dotti, Deanna and I arrived on Tuesday so we could get things set up for everyone else’s arrival – a little grocery shopping to stock the house, hanging nametags on doors and placing gift bags in rooms. But we were all waiting for the next day when the rest of the girls would arrive. One by one as they walked in the door, we wrapped each other in huge hugs and even shed some tears of joy. THIS is what we had been waiting for! We hoped to spend a wonderful few days together and we were not disappointed.

There were mornings on the marsh . . .

. . . and evenings watching the sun set over the fields . . . 

. . . and the water.

There was food . . .

. . . and there was chocolate.

There was a little shopping . . .

. . . lots of shooting . . .

. . . some Instagramming . . .

. . . and lots and lots of fun!

One of my favorite memories during our time together was rising early (not my favorite time of day) and going down to the beach to see the sunrise. We arrived before dawn and set up our tripods and cameras. We chit-chatted for a while but when the “show” began to start, silence fell over our little group and we stood there in awe. 

We shot hundreds of photos, both with our big cameras and our phones. But more importantly than all of that, we were together, sharing our love for our hobby and for our friendship.

Yes, we had a great time together, but what we hope was the end result was a closeness, a bonding, that will keep us together, keep us writing here at FOL and sharing with all of you, our readers. We spent time talking about our future plans for this little place in blogland and how we want to move forward and improve.

I hope this post makes you feel like you almost came along on this trip with us. Believe me, you were all in our thoughts.