Back in 1982, the bubbly all-girl rock band, the Go-Go’s, released a song that I immediately adopted as my holiday anthem.

Vacation, all I ever wanted
Vacation, had to get away

The Go-Go’s showed me that spending time with my girlfriends could be a blast; in the video for their song “Vacation,” I watched all five of these band members and friends water ski in formation while wearing tutus and tiaras.

It was ridiculous and fun, and after seeing their video, I vowed to be as carefree as the Go-Go’s and to continue to make time to play with my friends – even as a grown-up.

So, did I keep that vow?

Although it can be challenging these days to round up my friends, find tiaras and tutus, and rent waterskis, I do try to fit in some girl time whenever possible. Recently, I was able to get my friends to agree to an entire weekend of play. I thought long and hard about where we could go and what we could do, and finally came up with an itinerary that would maximize our fun time.

I suggested doing a staycation right here in Joplin.

By booking a room at a local hotel, we’d still be able to get away from our everyday responsibilities, plus we’d have more time for doing fun things because we wouldn’t have to spend time in the car traveling to another city.

My friends agreed. We packed our bags, said goodbye to our families, and transformed ourselves into tourists in our hometown for one blissful weekend.

Friday

We kicked off our staycation on a Friday afternoon by heading to downtown Joplin to do some serious shopping. I felt giddy about being able to take my time perusing the hip boutiques and markets. I could linger at these stores because there were no time limitations on this staycation, either. That is, we could stay and shop until the stores closed their doors. And I was prepared to do just that.

Hours later, we suddenly realized that we were ravenous. We wanted a nearby place where we could rest our feet and enjoy a good meal. We chose to eat at the Red Onion Cafe, a casual urban restaurant that’s been one of the top restaurants in Joplin since it opened in 1995.

Saturday

It’s an unwritten rule that any girls’ weekend must include some form of pampering. This is one rule that I have no intention of ever breaking. So, after a light breakfast at the hotel, my friends and I spent the rest of the morning letting others take care of us at Oasis Salon and Day Spa, a full-service spa and salon where the magical staff is always able to melt away the stress in my life and leave me feeling blissful.

Why is it that time at the spa seems to go so quickly? Before I knew it, it was lunchtime. We decided to eat at Ichiban, a sushi restaurant close to Oasis. Light and healthy, sushi was the perfect post-spa meal.

Still, we were exhausted from being catered to all morning, so we went back to the hotel to nap. Such problems, right?

When we woke up, we wanted to get outside and enjoy the fresh air, so we decided to take a walk through Joplin’s original residential district, Murphysburg. The grand homes here still stand proud more than a century after they were built. Seeing the different architectural styles and learning the history of the homes made this a unique and memorable walk.

Since Murphysburg is just a few blocks from bustling Main Street, we chose to finish off our evening enjoying cocktails and dinner at the popular Club 609. There’s a daily happy hour here, which made us very, very happy. The food here ranges from light appetizers to casual gourmet entrees and is consistently delicious.

Sunday

The last day of our staycation. Sniff Sniff. We checked out of the hotel and headed straight to our favorite breakfast place, The Bruncheonette. It might not look like much on the outside, but this farm-to-table establishment creates breakfast, brunch, and lunch items that make your mouth sing.

After stuffing ourselves at The Bruncheonette, we desperately fought off the urge to nap. My friend suggested another walk downtown. Because it was Sunday, I didn’t think we’d be able to see much, but she reminded me that there are things that we can see and appreciate in Joplin any day of the year: our town’s murals. Appreciating public art on a beautiful day? Count me in.

The mural tour took about an hour, leaving us plenty of time for the last stop on our staycation: Keltoi Winery. Located just north of Joplin in Oronogo, Missouri, Keltoi is an Irish winery that offers wine tastings and the perfect location to chill with your friends for an afternoon. And we did just that, chatting on the patio and sipping our wine right up until Keltoi closed for the day.

Staycation, all I ever wanted…