5 Reasons You Need to Plan a Girls’ Weekend Today
I’m currently listening to the audiobook Let Them by Mel Robbins. Somehow, I always find Mel right when I need her. Because of her, I high-five myself when I look in a mirror. She taught me that you have to be your biggest fan, and it’s true. She also taught me I can do hard things like get out of bed when I don’t want to, simply by counting down from 5. By the time I reach 1, I’m up and out of bed (most of the time).
I’m not very far into her latest book, but I’ve already been hit with something so powerful. She says, “Time with your loved ones is like a melting ice cube.” Oh, my heart - OUCH.
Of course, it makes me think about my family - my parents, husband, kids, and grandkids. But it also makes me think about my girls, those ladies who are there for every major event in my life.
My friends and I have been going on a girl’s weekend since 2010. As far as I can tell, we’ve only missed one year - shocking that it was 2020, right? - and I just got back from that weekend with them. When we were first talking about it, we decided to call it WOW, but never actually clarified if it was Women Only Weekend, Women on Whiskey, Women on Wine, or some similar combination. If you’re not going away with your best friends already, I’m here to convince you it’s time to do it.
When was the last time you went away with just the girls? Staying up late, eating food you wouldn’t normally eat, drinking too much, laughing until you almost wet your pants (or maybe you do because you know, you’re at a certain age), and knowing it’s okay because you’re with people who love you no matter what and there’s no judgment. However, they don’t forget either, so keep that in mind.
The Planning! I often wonder if the planning isn’t just as good as the weekend itself. We always start multiple text strings. We share thoughts, food ideas, Instagram Reels, and emojis for weeks before the actual trip takes place. Eventually, we get down to the nitty-gritty of who is picking up whom and what time we’ll all be meeting at the house we’ve rented for the weekend.
Staying in a beautiful house that’s not your own is part of the fun. We used to stay in the same place each time we traveled to Deadwood, SD, for our weekend. It was called, appropriately enough, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid Suites. We always stayed in the biggest one - the Butch Cassidy. Back then, we were so excited to find a large Coke cooler to keep all our food in, swinging saloon doors that housed one of the bedrooms, and exposed brick walls. It was two blocks from the main street with all the casinos, and every one of us knew the key would be under the mat if anyone was last to straggle in.
Now, we find a beautiful VRBO home located several miles outside of town. Our tastes have changed. This past weekend we were happy to find a stainless steel fridge, hot tub, and open floor plan so we could carry on conversations while grabbing something in the kitchen and moving back to the living room area. We were also delighted to find that one of the large photos hung in an alcove was of Robert Redford and Paul Newman as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.
But also saddened when on a stroll by our old place this year, we found it gutted.
The deep conversations keep us coming back. Our lady’s weekend has been a chance to divulge new careers, blooming - and ending - relationships, check in on kids and grandkids, and compare health concerns, among tons of other topics. We stay up talking late into the night after several drinks, and we’re up early so we don’t miss any of the hanging around in our jammies talking some more. Our conversations eventually lead us to the hot tub and, finally, out the door to try our hand at gambling in town. Those conversations have cemented old and brand-new friendships, and it’s the heart of why we wouldn’t miss our weekend for the world.
Time is precious, even when you don’t notice. Much like Mel’s melting ice cube theory, every one of us values our time together, especially now that we’ve realized we’ll never know when we’ve been on our last girl’s weekend. In 2019, our weekend took place in March. In early December of that year, one of our own had gone missing as she had passed away unexpectedly. Last year, our trip was again in March. One of the ladies didn’t feel the greatest, but she came along anyway. Seven short months later, she succumbed to cancer. This year, we set our table with memories of our two friends who we knew were with us in spirit and toasted to them.
Looking back through the photos of weekends with my girls, I count at least 12 ladies who have joined us over the years. There’s never been a time when every single lady could go, and we always welcome new people joining us. But I believe I can speak for all of us when I say that we’ve never regretted our weekend together. There’s never been a fight or a blow-up, just great times. So much so that when we were all attending the funeral of one of our friends, the woman next to me whispered, “Kind of makes you never want to miss another WOW, doesn’t it?” I couldn’t agree more.