A toast to our long-distance, lifelong friends

I worked diligently into the night a few weeks back...uploading, downloading, and fitting photos into tiny boxes on an electric calendar template for Taylor. It's one of my annual gifts, a tradition I started back when we were dating, I think. And every Christmas morning, we enjoy looking back on the year when he opens that silly calendar. 

My electronic life is a mess. With an archaic home computer, a work computer, a digital camera, and my phone photos, nothing is organized, synchronized, or seamless. It's a clunky process, and figuring out all of this technology is one of my resolutions. That's another story. But for the purposes of this calendar, I searched through several folders, neatly organized electronic photo albums from friends, and relied on photos sent from family to compile this year's edition. 

I stumbled upon some great photos I need to share, along with the stories of the accompanying memories. 

I know I mentioned a trip out to Austin last May, as well as welcoming our Austin friends to Oregon, but I don't believe I shared the {never before seen!} photos below. We love any and all time we get with Blake and Andrea, and this last year was extra special, with more than a whole week of time together if you add up our trip and theirs. Between wineries, breweries, bicycling, barbecue-ing, sightseeing, kayaking, and just chatting about life, in general, we packed a lot of memories into our time together. 

The next visit will be a little less footloose and fancy-free, as the McFarlings will be welcoming a sweet baby girl to their family in a mere matter of weeks. We could not be any happier for this couple. Andrea has been a friend for six or seven (is that right?!) years now, and I feel so blessed and thankful we've kept up our friendship. It's part of the magic of Austin I've always told Taylor about, which he experiences each time he visits, too. 

I started writing this post because I wanted to thank Andrea for being a great photographer...she always captures the moments during our time together, and a lot of my calendar footage came from her. 

We love watching our great friends become parents, and we know Blake and Andrea will be up there with the best of 'em because of their humility, kindness, care, and concern, among a million other amazing qualities they possess.