Girlfriends

Part of this blog was to keep friends/family updated on Molly and the other part was a journal for Molly to read when she is older. I want to her to know me and I thought by writing down thoughts and feeling she would get to see a different side of me.

This post is to show the girlfriends who have been a big part of my life. So many childhood memories and so many happy hours have been shared with these women. They are a piece of who I am in one way or another and I would like to share them with Molly because girlfriends are important, even if it is just one or two......who do you call when you need to cry? Who is you first choice for happy hour?

I got on Facebook a month or so ago. I wasn't using it to find friends but when I figured out that, that is exactly what you were supposed to do I started searching and found some old friends that I just got so excited about, I couldn't sleep. So many questions and so much catching up to do, I just had to share.

My first friend ever, Kelley, I met when I was four years old. We stayed friends and apart of each other lives through high school. When I joined the Army our paths have only crossed a couple time between now and then. We have reconnected on Facebook. We have different paths but such a long friendship means that bonds are very tight and even after years and years of not seeing or talking to each other we can pick up just like we have never left. I am sure my mother or her mother has older pictures of us but this is the oldest I could find. There is no date on the back but I cut my hair in the 5th grade so this has to be 3rd/4th grade putting us 8 or 9 years old. We did not dress like this on any ordinary day, just dress up day. I am sure we were going to have tea with the queen or something equally as important.

My sister is on the left, I am center and Kelley on the right. Now this photo might be a little narcissistic because I am front and center but I don't recall ever being this thin or pretty so I am sorry Tori and Kelley to have to show this picture but, DAMN I look good and this photo could not stay hidden any longer.

Another friend I found on Facebook is Lisa. I met her in the fourth grade. I don't recall who, what, where, when but I know we became friends on the first day of school. We stayed friends until high school and then all that high school, teenage drama took over but she was such a big part of my childhood. I mean image all the slumber parties, camping trips, summer vacations, our parents were even friends. I found her on Facebook and we have started to chat.

We did not talk very long but it is funny that even though we took different paths, they were definitely parallel paths. I have not seen her since our high school graduation (1990) so there is a whole lot more to talk about but one thing that caught me by surprise or that I thought was interesting is that we both got married and had our first babies later in life. We used our 20's for what they were intended for.

This picture is dated 7-5-1985. We were age 12/13 and fabulous so keep you comments to yourself.

My next friend that I found was April. I met her when I started working at Safeway (our local grocery store) when I was 16. She was the friend I had when I started driving, started making my own money, found my independence, stared experimenting, and she was my first roommate. We had an awesome 2 bedroom, 1 bath apartment that was in a four-plex. We we living large and if I remember correctly we paid $350.00 a month for rent. Can you imagine! $350.00 split two ways! What I wouldn't do to have a mortgage payment of $350.00

I joined the Army and she moved to Canada. We touched base again back in 2000, she had gotten married and had two babies at this point. She holds such a special place in my memories because of all the new things we experienced and all the trouble we found. I imagine that if we got together we could find some more, we were pretty good at finding it.

Let me explain this awesomeness. This was on to the side and up above our "apartment porch". Do not ask me why there is a cooler, folded chair and traffic cone on our porch. I don't know, but I am sure there was a good reason. This photo is not dated but if my memory serves me right this is August 1990. It was my birthday (turned 18) and we were going out, which explains our bigger than life hair. We went sun tanning (note my nice red tan), dressed up, and we had or found a party....details are not important here because........wow we are gorgeous.

Which brings me to today. These friends do not live near me or even in the same state and/or country. I met my next friend in 1997, Cecilia. We worked at Time Warner Cable together. I think we hit it off right away because we don't take a lot of sass but tend to give a lot. We both moved around but we always stayed in touch and we always took trips to visit each other. She had children sooner than I did which changed the dynamics of our relationship but it never wavered and now that I have Molly our friendship has become full circle. We spend lots of time together because both of our significant others have jobs that keep them away. We count on each other and boy is it nice to have someone that you know will always be there. Cec also made a big sacrifice for me, one I can never repay and that is she took care of everything for me when I was deployed. Most (even Cec) do not understand the stress you have when you pick up and leave everything behind and you have to count on someone to take care of things. She did this for me, managed my money, paid my bills, fought with credit card companies when they wanted to charge me late fees, dueled with my family, stored my car and possessions, I could go on and on but you get the idea. To sum it up she is super woman.

This was taken April 2004. We went to Jamaica when I got back from Iraq. Cec is in the center and I am on the right. We really should be ashamed of ourselves because the only photo I have of us together is in our swim suits in Jamaica and I would never ever share those photos.

I have two other friends that I would consider close. One is a boy and it just isn't right to group him in with my girlfriends but we have been friends for 20 years. My other girlfriend is an Army buddy. She is up for anything, anytime to include going to Nicaragua for a girls weekend. Everyone needs a friend like this. She also doesn't mind getting into a little bit of trouble.

Yes, this is this best picture I have. This was taken April 2007 at Corn Island, Nicaragua. Apparently we like to take close ups when we are feeling our best which leaves me with a bunch of blurry photos.

Long enough for you? It is probably good that I don't have many friends because that would be a whole lot more bragging. So this is your mommy, Molly and never fear I will do just as many embarrassing things when you are older.............I am just BEGINNING.