This weekend I spent a long-overdue, much-needed, relaxing weekend with some girlfriends. I am refreshed and the bags under my eyes aren’t nearly as noticeable as they were before I left (though every day since I’ve been back, they have crept back to their usual self).  And although I hate to admit that our eating (and drinking) habits veered slightly off this everyday road to healthy, the part of me that really did benefit was my soul.  Good girlfriends are just great for the soul.
L to R: Angela, Sarah, Kari, Amy
My weekend was spent with three friends who I have known since elementary school. By middle school, we were inseparable and had one of those picture buttons made at our local mall with the caption “4 X’s the Trouble†(and if I could find this button and scan the picture for this article, I SO would…but somehow we have all “misplaced” our button). So this annual weekend tradition has become our 4 X’s the Trouble weekend.  As the years have passed, life has moved us in various directions…different colleges, different jobs, different neighborhoods.  Three of us now happen to live only miles from each other, but when we meet for our weekend getaway, all four of us pick up right where we left off.  That’s the beauty of a great friendship…time or miles do not separate.
We rent a cozy condo at Wintergreen Resort. Most people know the resort more for its snow activities, but we go just to relax. It’s a great weekend for us to catch up on books, gossip magazines, and chick flicks. This year I brought my recipe for Sweet Potato & Black Bean Enchiladas to make for dinner since everyone
Making enchiladas
wanted to try them out, so I brought a little bit of Everyday Road to Healthy with me! Despite the little kick of spice, even my fair-tastebud friend enjoyed them. Or maybe it was just the yummy margarita pre-dinner drink we all had beforehand. Either way, we paired the enchiladas with this warm corn salsa Amy made and had a great Mexican fiesta. That reminds me, I must get that recipe so I can share with you all. It was delicious! And what about dessert, you ask? Well, fortunately for us, one of the fearless foursome owns her own cookie and cupcake business, 2 Sweets, so we all benefit from this! Last year we had cupcakes with “4s” on them to signify our 4 x’s the trouble name, but this year we had cosmo shaped chocolate cookies and chocolate chip cookie dough cupcakes. It is an understatement to say these were delicious! The cupcakes tasted just like you had taken a spoon, scooped up some cookie dough and took a bite. They were to die for!
Amy post-pedicure waiting for her massage
Everyone, even our husbands, thought we were going to party like teenagers again, but it was so not like that! We all have two kids each and all we cared about was eating a hot meal in peace, not having to set an alarm, deal with sibling rivalry, be on any sort of schedule at all, or wipe any tushes or noses! Saturday we even spent some time at Wintergreen Spa and got manicures and pedicures then came back and took a nap…ah pure bliss!!!
The weekend ended with us waking up to snow on the mountain! For anyone who knows me well, I am a fair-weathered type gal and especially only like driving in nice weather. I happened to drive this year so I was a little stressed on how I was going to make it DOWN the mountain! It did, however give us a good picture opportunity, though you can’t tell there is snow in the background. 
Needless to say, we made it down the mountain in one piece (my knuckles have never been so white in my life) and had a peaceful drive home to gear up for the chaos waiting for us at home. Although we were only gone for a few days, I missed my family, my own bed, and even missed my routine, but thoroughly enjoyed my weekend with my dear friends. Thank you Amy, Kari and Sarah for your friendship. I feel very fortunate to have you all in my life! Same time, same place next year?!
**Note:Â All photos courtesy of Kari…thanks!
