I made a list. It was a list of things that I’d like to get done at #magnoliaridgeLA. Even when I made the list, I knew all of the things wouldn’t get done. Nonetheless, I dedicated a special page in my “life book” — my notebook that keeps things rolling in my world — to a list full of things to get done in one week. 

I am a list maker. I can’t operate without lists. I make lists for work, grocery lists, lists for things to do at home. I even make lists on my days off of things I’d like to do for fun. I add things like “pick blackberries” and “wash towels” to lists. I don’t know if I could operate effectively without them. 

As my friend’s arrival neared and I saw how many things weren’t done from the list, I didn’t even feel disappointed. I felt proud of what we did get done and I knew Naomi truly wouldn’t care if the new adirondack chairs weren’t assembled yet. You see, the list was really more about me wanting to push for progress than it was about impressing my guest. 

That’s the beauty of friendships like these. There’s no judgement. I invited my best friend and her three daughters to stay with us for the weekend. This house is still nowhere near finished and even if it was, it’s not big enough or nice enough to really accommodate house guests. There was eight of us staying in this little two bedroom, 1 bath house for the weekend. It wasn’t ideal, but I knew it would be fun. 

I bet, years from now when things are more ideal, we’ll look back on this weekend where everyone crammed into this tiny house, still full of boxes, and laugh. I bet, the kids will remember “camping out in the living room,” which is really just a sneaky way of saying “you have to sleep on the floor because we don’t have anywhere for all of us to sleep.” 

The Nester says, “it doesn’t have to be perfect to be beautiful,” and that was my motto for this weekend. 

A lot of times, when we’re expecting house guests, we spend a week running around cleaning things that we all know we wouldn’t have cleaned otherwise. While we did make a push to finish some lingering items on the list, I have not stressed over this. I think my easy going attitude comes from knowing who’s coming. 

Naomi and I have been friends since we met on a free trip to Washington DC the summer before our senior year of high school. We both won essay contests that afforded us this trip with a handful of other people we didn’t know from around the state. We became fast friends and decided to live together when she moved north for college. Fast forward to sixteen years later, and we’re still friends. We’re friends that don’t see each other or talk nearly enough, but always pick up right where we left off. More importantly, we’re friends that can show up to messy houses with zero judgement, which is the best kind of friends in my opinion. 

This weekend is important for several reasons. It’s her first time to come and see the new place, and it’s our first time to have weekend guests here. It’s our first time to get together since Zach and I got married, and it’s the first time that our kids will meet and play together. This should have happened sooner, but Corona killed several of our plans. Finally, we all squeezed into our tiny house and had a fun, first weekend at Magnolia Ridge together. 

Everything went even better than I expected. The kids got along great and played so hard. We picked blackberries, got out the water slide, swam in the pond, used the new kayak, rode 4wheelers, made ice cream, ate smores, and even had a day at the lake. We truly did it all. We washed loads and loads of wet towels and muddy clothes, and I think we swept the filthy floors no fewer than 10 times. 

There were so many “firsts” packed into this weekend. Mine and Naomi’s first time to kayak. Our first time to swim in the pond here, which left Avery with “daddy legs.” This is how she described mud sticking to the blonde hairs on her legs. We laughed and laughed. It was our kids’ first time to meet. Travis’s first time to use the water slide at the lake. My first time to be thrown down a slip and slide. Our first time to have weekend guests at the new place. There were a bunch of exciting firsts. 

We wrapped up the weekend exhausted and played out. We made THE MOST of these few days together. Travis never quite got Aubrey, Adley, and Avery’s names straight and still calls Avery “the little one.” She calls him “that boy” so I guess it’s fair. 

Even in the middle of this weekend together, I knew we were making memories that we’d cherish forever. I looked out over the still water of the pond and watched the kids dangle their feet over the pier. I knew that this is what we bought this place for. I knew the kids would be thrilled to have more weekends here or there together and it warmed my heart so much. The endless gathering of sand by the back door and marathon shower rotations were all worth it. Getting caught in a rainstorm at the pond was worth it. The fact that I’ll be tired for the rest of this week — all very worth it.