The very first thing I wanted to share about my recent trip to the East Coast was the time spent with my dear friend, Nan, who writes at
Letters from a Hill Farm. We met about 20 years ago on a book site that no longer exists. We (and a few others - including Les from
Prairie Horizons) progressed through various means of communication over the years. We've shared our love of reading, our trials and tribulations, tips and help in raising our kids, joys, sorrows, and much, much love. I consider Nan one of my closest friends, even though this trip was only the 2nd time I've met her face-to-face. Nan and her family came to Texas in 1998 and we met at a bookstore in downtown Austin. This time was in her part of the world.
My husband and I planned our trip so that I could attend
Malice Domestic 29 and so that he could go to a work conference in Boston. I knew I had to visit Nan and her family because they live only a few short hours from that part of the world. It was a wonderful time together. We visited for less than 24 hours, but so many hugs, words, and smiles were shared. I'm delighted that we were able to take this trip. Here are some pictures:
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| Nan, Kay and Hazel Nina (Nan's granddaughter) |
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| Hazel Nina - so full of energy and joy - Raya, the cat in the background |
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| Lucy (held by Tom, Nan's husband) - also full of energy and joy |
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| Nan and Tom's donkey and sheep |
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| Ate some great pancakes with lots of maple syrup here for dinner - Yum! |
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| The weather was rainy and misty/foggy, but there was sunshine in our hearts. |
If you go to Nan's blog
here, you can see more pictures of our visit. I'll be showing some Boston pictures later this week and on Friday, I'll tell about the wonderful Bed and Breakfast where we stayed. Next week - Malice Domestic 29 - all week long!!
So fun peeking in on You and Nan's visit, Kay! That's what's so great about blogging, the relationships.
ReplyDeleteIt is indeed. Glad you enjoyed the photos.
DeleteI said this at Nan's blog, and I will repeat it here. It is so cool that you were able to visit them and that you had such a nice time. Lovely pictures.
ReplyDeleteThanks and yes, it was very cool!
DeleteThat is SO awesome! I LOVE stories that prove that you CAN be best friends with someone you met on the internet. I am so glad you had a wonderful time with a best friend.
ReplyDeleteWe really got lucky to find this kind of friendship so early in our 'internet' life. :-)
DeleteWhat a wonderful get together - lucky ladies! Loved the pics.
ReplyDeleteWe were indeed lucky. And thanks!
DeleteMore lovely pics of your visit with Nan. Lovely to see them and I'm so pleased for you both.
ReplyDeleteIt was a lot of fun, Cath!
DeleteHow nice to be able to take your friendship offline!
ReplyDeleteYes, much as we all enjoy chatting and connecting here in the virtual world, the real world is great. :-)
DeleteI can feel the JOY of your friendship!
ReplyDeleteLovely that you were able to see each other!
Joy indeed!
DeleteGreat post, Kay! I always find it so wonderful to find friendship online and meeting them in person. I've a friend whom I've known for 20 years and we started off as online friends too. She's from Pittsburgh and she had visited me twice! :)
ReplyDeleteI love that, Melody! So glad you've gotten to experience the fun as well.
DeleteSo, so wonderful. It warms my heart when blogging friends meet :) I only wish it happened more often for all of us :)
ReplyDeleteI know! Told you that you guys ought to visit Texas at some point. LOL
DeleteI love that you shared with us your visit with the lovely Nan. Great pictures too. I'm looking forward to your other posts. So glad you are back Kay.
ReplyDeleteI've got quite a few thoughts and experiences to share. A flurry for posts for a while. LOL
DeleteWhat a fun trip! How great to be able to catch up with a bookish friend in real life!
ReplyDeleteIt was the best time!
DeleteHow fun for you! I love when I meet blogging friends in real life :)
ReplyDeleteYes, I've gotten to do this a few times and it is really awesome!
DeleteKay you may have posted before but I either didn't remember or just didn't realize you knew Nan & Leslie for that long. That's so wonderful. Talk about a memorable trip - a bookish event and a visit with a dear friend!
ReplyDeleteYes, it's been a long, long time now. Our kids were in their teens and we were just beginning to find other readers on the internet.
DeleteI think we figured out that it was in 1997 that we first started chatting. I have an email somewhere around here, in which I tell my mom about the wonderful people I had "met" online in a book group. And then the gathering in '98 in Cleveland where I got to meet Teri. You and I met in Austin in either '99 or 2000, I think. Still hoping to meet Nan and Tom! Feels like I already have, though. So glad you had such a nice visit with them. Here's to a future get together, perhaps in Texas or Oregon! :)
DeleteNow I'm curious...I first met Les on a book site a long time ago, too. I wonder if we were both at that site....Small work, our book world, I think.
ReplyDeleteIt is such a small world, isn't it! Those early book sites (was ours On the Porch Swing?) were such important links to other readers in the pre-blogging days. Nan, Kay and I met on one call Bookstacks (which became Books.com). Or maybe it was the other way around!
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