Kelli Diane

It took a long while before I appreciated how much I had fallen in love with Seattle. Once I had, began the increasingly difficult task of convincing all of our friends that we hadn’t completely lost our mind; that the lack of sunshine hadn’t pushed us into insanity. While doing our best to sell them on a visit, we’d tell them that “it doesn’t really rain that much”, “it’s not real rain”, or “but the summer…oh man, the summer”. Though our efforts were usually met with laughter, severe eye-rolls, out-right dismissals or all of the above, we persisted.

Seattle has become our own little paradise. We can finally afford the lifestyle we aspired to live, surrounded by an incredible city while nestled into the perfect little Mayberry, the only thing missing from the picture were the friends that we left scattered across the country. The friends that knew Chris and I as individuals, before we knew each other, before we knew Dillon. Before “we” even existed.

Secretly, it’s been a personal mission to move as many of our old friends up here as possible. And this weekend, Lura has become the first seriously feasible candidate. After my recent visit to San Diego, Lura and MAS took a trip up here to check out Seattle and this weekend Lura was back for an interview.

As we set out on our girls night this evening, our dinner at Wild Ginger was drawn out over nearly two hours as we chatted our way down memory lane, challenged the perspectives of life and debated religion. Eventually meandering downstairs to The Triple Door, we pulled up to the bar for drinks and dessert while the band started their set. Another two hours later, we’d weaved our way from sociology to biology to business and back. I came away with new ideas on my work and business, in addition to a completely different perspective of life and people’s existence.

These are the shared experiences I miss so much. The four hours of conversation without once discussing parenthood or diapers. The strolls down memory lane, without having to explain the person I use to be or the places I once found so familiar. Part of what I love about our life in Seattle is the challenge to create something for ourselves and our family completely anew. New circles and friends. New work and experiences. But creating new doesn’t minimize the longing for the comfort of old and the friends that we’ve shared so much with.

Mood:  ecstatic