Saying goodbye to a good friend is never easy. We decided to give Nadine a proper send off to her new home in Haiti. First we started by planning a weekend away with 5 of Nadine’s friends (though she has many). We selected Palm Springs as our destination because of it’s locality and imposed relaxation. 
While searching for a hotel where we could feel pampered we also wanted a lot of bang for our buck. We chose the Embassy Suites Spa Hotel in La Quinta (15 minutes from Palm Springs). Our suite included full cooked to order breakfast each morning and a complimentary Happy Hour in the evening.
We had many events planned for Nadine and a weekend full of surprises.
While searching for a hotel where we could feel pampered we also wanted a lot of bang for our buck. We chose the Embassy Suites Spa Hotel in La Quinta (15 minutes from Palm Springs). Our suite included full cooked to order breakfast each morning and a complimentary Happy Hour in the evening.
We had many events planned for Nadine and a weekend full of surprises.
First we ate lunch at Chez Philippe http://www.chezphilippeps.com where we surprised each girl with personalized tote bags filled with lots of goodies. Each tote bag contained decadent treats such as Lavender Crabtree and Evelyn hand cream, Japanese silk fans, monogrammed Anthropologie tea cups, vintage luggage tags, comfy flip-flops, Branché handmade crystal necklaces www.parlene.etsy.com and a relaxing eye mask. Quelle surprise! 
We rested up a bit in our suite and gave Nadine her second surprise. Each girl took one letter from Nadine’s name and wrote a personal message to her on the back of the letter. We posted these up in the suite. When Nadine took down each letter we read our personal note to her. But remember, I said that there were only 5 of us and there are 6 letters in Nadine’s name. Who was the last letter from? Encore, quelle surprise!
We rested up a bit in our suite and gave Nadine her second surprise. Each girl took one letter from Nadine’s name and wrote a personal message to her on the back of the letter. We posted these up in the suite. When Nadine took down each letter we read our personal note to her. But remember, I said that there were only 5 of us and there are 6 letters in Nadine’s name. Who was the last letter from? Encore, quelle surprise!
The last letter in her name was a guest appearance by Alheli all the way from Switzerland! As you can imagine the laughter roared and the tears rolled. Nadine was completely touched by this gesture of sincere expressions.
Later that evening we enjoyed a lovely dinner at Piero’s. We spent time reminiscing and laughing at stories we recounted during our years of friendship. www.pierosacquapazza.com
The next morning we awoke to a delicious breakfast where we all gathered in the hotel restaurant for more feminine bonding.
We really did need that cup of coffee since we stayed up all night talking.
Next, we headed over to the city for some leisurely shopping. We found an adorable Chocolate Café where we further surprised Nadine with gifts from Tea Forte. All of these surprises were adding to the excitement of the weekend and Nadine was overjoyed. She is the type of person that is a pure joy to do things for because she truly appreciates even the smallest gesture. www.teaforte.com
Our weekend was truly relaxing. We stayed in one night and took advantage of the swimming pool. We ordered Chinese food and enjoyed each other’s company. All in all we had an amazing weekend filled with memories to help us with our separation of Nadine. It is times like these that we will reflect on for all things to come in the future. 
One of my favorite moments of the weekend was when we were driving and listening to our Hotter Than Haiti soundtrack (combined songs from each of us). We all sang along and serenaded Nadine with the song Kind and Generous by Natalie Merchant. This song depicts the very essence of how we all feel towards Nadine. Spending time with friends and saying goodbye as one moves to another country is just another day in a European Style Life.
Kind and Generous Lyrics
You've been so kind and generous,I don't know how you keep on giving
For your kindness I'm in debt to you For your selflessness, my admiration For everything you've done, you know I'm bound, I'm bound to thank you for it....
Na Na na na na na na na na nana na na
You've been so kind and generous, I don't know how you keep on giving. For your kindness I'm in debt to you
And I never could have come this far without you
For everything you've done, you know I'm bound, I'm bound to thank you for it....
Na Na na na na na na na na nana na na na na
Oh, I want to thank you for so many gifts you gave with love and tenderness, I wanna thank you I want to thank you for your generosity, the love and the honesty that you gave me
I want to thank you, show my gratitude, my love and my respect for you,I wanna thank you
Oh I want to thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you...
No comments:
Post a Comment