The day all about my Friends.

I’ve been excited to write this blog ever since I started the whole blogging thing about a week ago…lol. So, I grabbed me a candy bar from my kids Halloween stash, poured me a cherry coke over crushed ice, and here I sit, ready to write about my friends.

I tried to think of a way that I could write about every friend I’ve ever had, but I knew I would leave someone out. So what I decided to do was write about the friends I have had that have been the very closest to me throughout my life, and who remain close to me to this day. I will go in chronological order starting from my first friend, to my most recent additions!

My first friend arrived six weeks after I was born. She is also my cousin and her name is Heather. Our moms were best of friends and we did everything together, and I mean everything. We were in the same dance, stayed the night with each other, went to lunch all the time with our moms, we even got the same things for Christmas. I always thought Santa was so cool that he would buy me and my best friend the same things. Anyways, we have remained close all these years. Sometimes we went through weeks, even months without making contact because of our busy lives, but we always knew we were there for each other.

My next friend arrived in Kindergarten, and her name is Jessica. She was so much fun. I loved going to her house, because her mom let her cook top raman soup all by herself and I thought that was so cool. We have remained very close through the years, no matter how separate of paths each of our lives were taking. She shares my OCD disorder of being a clean, neat, organized freak, so that makes us even closer. She is always there to listen and I am always here to listen to her too.

My next friend was Nikki. She arrived in 5^th grade. We were destined to be friends. Our teacher placed our desks right next to each other on the first day of school, and the rest is history. We have gone through so much with each other. Our funnest times were the rebel years when we would sneak out to “hang out” with the neighborhood boys. We have had a very special bond all these years. We pray for each other, give advice, laugh, and most of all, and just feel comfort knowing that no matter what happens, we will always have each other as friends.

Throughout middle school and junior high, we had a little group that consisted of Me, Heather, Nikki, LaToya, and Steph. LaToya now lives in New Zealand, and I miss her so much. She is a very very strong girl and I admire her in so many ways. Steph is here in town. She is so pretty and nice and thoughtful. I don’t get to see her as often as I would like due to our busy lives. Both Steph and Toya’s houses were the hangout/party houses. We could always guarantee on the weekends to have a great time at either of their houses.

In 9^th grade, after I made Drill Team, my closest friend became Erin. She and I were inseparable, and boy did we have some crazy times driving around in her moms super old car we called the gray ghost. She had her license, but was afraid to drive, and I didn’t have mine but I still always drove. We only hung out with each other and we had so much fun. We always found a pair of boys to be our boyfriends. We would just have them around until we were sick of them, and then we would ditch them and move on. She is the one person who I can almost immediately know what she is thinking without her even telling me and vice/versa. She is moving into my ward within the next year or so, and I am very excited about that. Although we probably won’t have our crazy times like we used to, we can still have lots of fun.

After I got married and had Hallie, I lost contact with lots of my friends. It wasn’t that we didn’t like each other; it was just that we all led very different lives. I was married with a husband and house and baby, and they were all headed off to college. Those were some very lonely times for me. I had Gavin and moved out to where we live now and then came Mandy, who unbeknownst to her, became a lifesaver to me. We were in the YW pres. Together, and she was a happy-go-lucky kind a gal who was so crafty and talented, the type of girl who could add her special touch to any event and make it so much better. She invited me to hang out with her and her Bunco group and to get together and all sorts of stuff. I was so happy that I finally had friends again. She moved out of our ward and I was so worried that I wouldn’t have her anymore, but she stuck it out with me and we have remained close ever since. We had lots of late nights scrap booking, having nacho trips at 7-11, and just talking. We have become even closer over the past year or so too. She has went through a lot, and has allowed me to be her counselor. I love to lend a listening ear, and I am always here, and she has been very good to me as well. She is still very talented, a great cook, mother, wife, cook, aunt, daughter, daughter in law, sister, cousin, granddaughter, sister in law, niece, friend, and downright fun to be with because of her personality. Notice I put cook twice because she is very good at that and you all know how I love to eat.

Through meeting Mandy, I have had opportunities to meet all sorts of people, but one of my favorites is Janice. She is a Hoot! She is this nice Mormon gal, but has a wild streak in her; she loves to PARTY-not like the drunken kind, but always ready to have a good time. She is a marathon runner, something that blows my mind. I can’t even run half a block but she runs 26.2 miles, which is just amazing. About a year ago, she and I and Mandy decided that we were all a little fat…isn’t it amazing how having kids does that. So I took the leap first joining a diet class. Janice was always the first to compliment me and made me feel so good. She and Mandy joined shortly after, and as a group, I lost 30 lbs, I think Janice lost 40 or so, and Mandy lost close to 40 (?) so that is like 110 lbs total. We lost the total weight of what I used to weigh in high school! She is a very good wife to her husband and mother to her kids. She is very involved in her friend’s lives because all her family lives out of town and so she has the time to be very dedicated to all of us. One of the things that is great about Janice is that she isn’t afraid to make new friends. She has a keen eye for people who may be lonely or need a friend. She always invites them to stuff that we might be doing as a group and that is very good of her. I know that it makes a lot of those people so happy. That brings me to my next friend.

Holly is in Janice and Mandy’s ward, and they invited her to be in our little group, which is a huge deal because we are so awesome. Holly is famous because her mom and dad are in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir…lol. j/k but that is a huge deal. She is a great cook as well. I mention my friends being great cooks because I am terrible at it. She is very spiritual and her family has a wonderful set of values that we should all strive for. The great thing is that she still lets loose and has a wonderful time with us. When Janice, Mandy, Holly, and I get together and the mood is right, we can get a little out of hand with our jokes, laughing, stories, etc. She is a very thoughtful person, always giving so willingly of herself. Whenever I have been sick, or my kids, Holly is always there to bring me a wonderfully homemade meal, and that means so much to me. She is good to listen, offer advice, and help.

Just off the top of my head, I am going to name a few more of my close friends which I have had that I don’t talk to near as much as I would like to, and if they read my blog, please don’t feel sad that I didn’t dedicate a whole paragraph to you. I am only putting first names. They include: Dana, Jesenia, Lindsey, Raquel, Corinne, all my drill team friends, all my Bunco friends, card swap members, neighbors, church friends, and all others who have touched my life in some way. I love you all; truly I do and am grateful to have you. As I sat here thinking back on all the years, I have had so many good people to call my friends, I am so lucky and grateful, so thanks to all of you. Have a good day!

p.s. sorry, I don't have any pics of my friends. that is not very nice of me. I will someday though.