What Would I Do Without My Friends?

Last night, I enjoyed a lovely dinner with my friends, Leslie, Nichole, and Wendy.  I have been friends with these ladies for 12.5 years, ever since I moved to Richmond.  We've been gathering for dinner every 2-3 months for a while, which is pretty remarkable for such busy people.  We talk SO much that we are amazed when it is 11:15pm on a Sunday night!  The time flies.  We laugh, we cry, we challenge and support each other and we just enjoy being together.  Our lives have changed so much in 12.5 years, and Nichole has even moved all over the country and back (thankfully).  We still make our friendship a priority.  (Leslie, thank you for motivating me to blog again).

Last weekend, I met my college friends in Myrtle Beach for the weekend.  Susan, Anna, Billie, Deanna, Thea, and I had a blast!  Lots of talking, laughing, eating, and shopping!  We definitely had a lot less drinking than in college!   We saw the movie, No Strings Attached and loved it!  It was perfect for a girls' weekend.  We have been friends for approximately 15 years and our lives have dramatically changed as well.  I had not seen Susan in 6 years and we didn't miss a beat.  She's an amazing lady and I've missed her!  It just warmed my heart to see them all and to be together.   Thank God for Phi Mu for bringing us all together and creating this lifelong bond.  The weekend was rejuvenating!  I can't wait to see them all again.  Here are a couple of photos:

I've always thought that when you leave your family and go away to college or to a new town, your friends become your "new family".  I could not have chosen a more wonderful "family". 

I would be lost without my friends!

An Update

It has been a whole week since my last blog.  It has been an interesting week.

Chris's father, Allen, was admitted to Henrico Doctors' Hospital last Wednesday and was discharged yesterday.  During that time, they did a biopsy on a mass on his lung.  From that they learned that the mass was milignant.  So now he's dealing with 4 blockages in his heart and lung cancer.  After doing a MRI and PET scan they've determined that he has 2 tumors in his lungs, potentially 2 different types of cancer, and cancer in the lymph nodes around the lungs.  But there is no sign of cancer in any other organs, thankfully.  Due to his cardiac status, he is not a candidate for surgery.  Radiation is not an option but chemo is.  Right now they are trying to determine the type of chemo they need to use.  Chris wasn't sure if his father was going to accept chemotherapy treatments but according to his mother, Allen does plan to accept treatments.  Chris was relieved.  Please keep Allen and Shirley, my inlaws, and the rest of the family in your prayers. 

Tonight we learned that Uncle Walt, Shirley's brother, has been hospitalized with heart issues and a concern regarding a mass on his lung.  My goodness, when it rains in pours!  Please send prayers to Uncle Walt and Aunt Peggy and their family. 

Some great news, my Girl's Weekend/Reunion was wonderful.  Meg, Jessica, Josie, and I had an amazing weekend in Myrtle Beach.  We did a lot of talking and catching up.  We did some shopping but mostly, we talked.  I was pleased to finally get Jessica set up with Facebook so I'm hoping we can stay in touch with that.  We are determined to do a better job of getting together.  Time flies. 

From Meg - JanFeb 2010

Thank you to Chris and Shirley, aka Mom Mom, for managing our kiddos so I could be away for the weekend. 

Now, my parents are enjoying the weekdays in Myrtle Beach, I hope.  They will check-out on Friday.  I hope they're enjoying the break from "Snowlaski".  The resort, Marriott's Oceanwatch Villas was so beautiful and very family friendly.  I hope to go back with Chris and the kids.  I was really impressed. 

Other good news, today was the 10 year anniversary of my blind date with Chris.  That is shocking to me.  Where has 10 years gone?  We are so blessed that we met that night.  Neither of us remember the conversation we had at the Triple.  Then we took the 3 roses he brought me (such a gentleman) to my apartment and them moved on to Banditos.  It's like we didn't want the night to end.  He really is so special and we have had so much fun together.  Nothings perfect but I couldn't imagine anyone else as my partner.  We have many years of memories to come. 

I need to get to bed.  They are calling for 1-3 inches of snow here tonight.  I'm interested to see what's on the ground in the morning.