Hey y’all: Getaway Girl™ Casey Wohl is back and she’s “keeping it weird” in Austin, Texas. Her nicely detailed account gives you plenty of ideas for the perfect fall girlfriend getaway. We are so ready to go! Enjoy!

by Casey Wohl

My friend Ali and I had a fantastic time in Austin, Texas. We arrived on a Thursday and were greeted by Ashley, who drove us to the 405-acre Hyatt Regency Lost Pines Resort & Spa, which is 20 miles away from downtown Austin and used to be a pecan orchard.

With 492 guest rooms, most with private balcony or patio, the resort brings jeans and business suits together in a comfortable ranch-style setting. Activities here are endless, from Spa Django to the Renegade Equestrian Center to the Wolfdancer Golf Club, as well as hiking in McKinney Roughs Nature Park, white water rafting on the Colorado River, and fun-in-the-sun at the Crooked River Water Park. We enjoyed massages and an amazing dinner at Stories Restaurant that included five courses and items such as scallops, lobster, venison, quail and filet mignon. It was wonderful!
The next morning, we headed back to town to our host hotel, The Driskill Hotel. Built in 1886 as a cattle barron’s showplace, The Driskill is located in downtown Austin with 189 guestrooms and suites distributed between the original Historic Wing and the Traditional Wing, which was added in 1929. No detail is forgotten inside or out as the hotel features a very ornate exterior complete with flags out front, a beautiful columned lobby; original art, oil paintings, and precious antiques; ornate beds designed exclusively for the hotel; marble floors and stained-glass dome. The Driskill has hosted celebs such as Dennis Quaid and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. Singer Jewel filmed her latest video here and both Lance Armstrong and President George W. Bush held press conferences here. Read the rest of this entry »

Big life events call for big celebrations, and who better to celebrate with than our girlfriends? Women are well-versed at celebrating milestones. Most of us can throw a baby shower or plan a wedding shower with our eyes closed. But when life throws you a curve, you need a new twist on the traditional girlfriend celebrations. For example: The Stepmom Shower! Izzy Rose, author of The Package Deal: My (not-so) Glamorous Transition from Single Gal to Instant Mom shares how to throw one in this post, written especially for GirlfriendCelebrations. Izzy’s not a wicked stepmother, but she does have a wicked sense of humor, so enjoy, girlfriends!

by Izzy Rose

Single gals—have you noticed that the dating pool has changed recently? There’s a new ripple in it: Many of the eligible bachelors out there are hardly single. They come with small versions of themselves and an ex-wife! If you have a girlfriend who has recently taken the marital plunge and surfaced with a man plus kids, celebrate this life transition by throwing her a Stepmom Shower: an afternoon of girlfriend adoration and indulgence! Unlike the traditional baby shower where mama-to-be receives gifts for the survival of the newborn, the stepmom shower honors the grown woman, similarly thrust into an unknown world, just as naïve and in need of care. Because our girlfriends know best how to comfort us in times of uncertainty and stress, the Stepmom Shower celebrates female friendship, good humor and applauds the bravery required to plug into a family that existed long before you came along.

The setting

The “celebrated” shows up to the location of her choosing (shooting range, ice arena, wine bar, poolside cabana) in her wedding dress. (I don’t know about you, but I’ve just been waiting for an excuse to put on my Cinderella gown on again.) All attending ladies are asked to wear a retired bridesmaid dress.

Food and drink

What your girlfriend needs is some good, old-fashioned nurturing … not a low calorie meal! I suggest you ditch the healthy crudités, bust out the butter cookies and turn on the martini fountain.

The gifts

Give her something she will really appreciate, and use. A single gal turned insta-mom to half-grown kids has no need for bum powder and babydoll socks. If your girlfriend is going to survive stepmotherhood, she must remember to take care of herself. Here are a few of my favorite stepmom shower gifts:

A case (or box) of wine

1 pound of French cheese (crackers included)

90-minute massage

Xanax sampler pack

New lipsticks

Games

It wouldn’t be a shower without a competitive game, now would it? Since all of you will be in wedding attire that screams to be shown off, create a makeshift runway in the house (long hallways are perfect), turn on Gloria Gaynor’s “I will Survive,” and take turns walking the runway of America’s Next Top Mama.

The guest of honor will judge all participants and choose one winner based on the following criteria:
Attitude (Turn up the sass!)

Design (Ruffles, bows and lace! Who combines them all?)

Color (Go bold! Turquoise and electric pink are guaranteed crowd-pleasers.)

For a prize, consider a copy of my book, The Package Deal: My (not-so) Glamorous Transition from Single Gal to Instant Mom.

Izzy Rose is the author of The Package Deal: My (not-so) Glamorous Transition from Single Gal to Instant Mom, and is the founder of www.stepmothersmilk.com, a humorous blog and resource site for the modern-day stepmom. She lives in Austin, Texas with her husband and his two sons. Read the rest of this entry »

We love to feature your Real Girlfriend stories, and we haven’t done so in a while. So, here’s one that’s long overdue. A reader named Denise wrote to us several months ago, and stayed in touch with us about her own girlfriend group. We simply love it when you use one of our girls night ideas and let us know how it goes. So in her own words, here’s Denise’s Real Girlfriend story: I have a group a girlfriends that embrace the friendship concept to it’s fullest. Our group is called “The Rough Riders.” Every year we head up to a horse ranch in New York and spend up to five days of relaxation, laughter, horseback riding, pampering ourselves and great food. I don’t know what I would do without these girls! We call it our Rough Rider Life Line. Our group is normally 10 women strong and our ages range from 30-ish to 50-ish, and our motto that we live by is “It’s All About Me!”.

In the past we’ve organized pedicure and manicures, wine and cheese, pumpkin carving and wee gee [Ouija] board games, karaoke night, facials and makeovers. So when I came across your party ideas section I had to see if there was something we haven’t done. We were heading up to the ranch in November and I suggested a “Pink Elephant” theme and the girls loved the idea. I also copied the “Which Wine are You” quiz…so keep the ideas coming! I’ve attached the photos I took the night we did the “Pink Elephant Theme”. It was a hit and all the girls really enjoyed it. We had a great time as we always do every year. It really doesn’t matter what we do. We enjoy each other’s company.

Rough Rider Group (L-R) Denise Coco (RR Double D), Denise Erdman (RR Stubby D), Tracy Lockhart, Cathy Malfale, Lynn McCall (in front with pink tiara), Roberta Cote (in back), Kim Blaisdell, Sue McCall

Thanks, Denise (aka Rough Rider Double D)

What do you do with your girlfriends? We’d love to hear your REAL GIRLFRIEND story and see photos from your girls night out, girls night in, girlfriend gatherings or girlfriend getaways. Just click here to email us. You may see yourself next on GirlfriendCelebrations.com! If we publish your story, we’ll send you a small “thank you” gift too! Read the rest of this entry »

You know how we love to get our chores done while having fun with our girlfriends. Well, our girlfriend Felicia from the Well-Heeled Society has come up with a way to combine two girls night party ideas in one: The book club/pedicure party. Now that’s a smart idea for busy girlfriends: Get your toes done, have fun, and discuss literature, all at the same time! Felicia created this party plan to celebrate the release of her book How To Stylishly Fall From Grace: Revelations From My Perfectly-Flawed Life.

Felicia has included suggestions of delicious spa products to use, as well as shoe-themed cocktails. Check out all her suggestions right here. And be sure to let us know what you think! Read the rest of this entry »