True friends....

Before I really begin this blog post, I have to take a moment to say Happy Birthday to my very BEST girlfriend, my Mom. I hope it was a great day Mama and I love you!

During my month in Chicago, everyone had at least one question in common - they wanted to know if we've made any good friends out here in the wilds of Oregon.

I've had a lot of time to reflect on my Oregon and Illinois friendships since my trip - some recent reconnections on face book and other experiences since arriving back in Oregon have made me do a lot of thinking about the life that Skippy and I have begun to build out here. And I can honestly say that without my Oregon friends, this would not be even close to the fantastic home it has become.

I mean, I have friends who will watch my kids at the drop of a hat, or who don't hesitate to call if they need a hand with their own. That's just what we do - it's not about money or favors or "I'll pay ya back" or any of that - it's just how we pitch in to keep each other sane.

I have friends to go to movies with who introduce me to the insanely yummy idea of dumping your M&Ms into the popcorn (try it, it's good!), friends to go eat ice cream brownies with, and friends who yell at me if I don't go to the gym after going to the movies for M&Ms popcorn and eating ice cream brownies.

I have friends who don't hesitate to take my own offspring to the potty with them when they are taking their own - after all, what's one more butt to keep track of right?

I have friends who step up in a crisis - who will keep my girls overnight without any hesitation when my baby gets sick and I'm stuck in the hospital and my husband is out of town. These are the kind of friends who tell you to breathe, and not to worry...and you actually listen because you trust them with your most precious cargo and suddenly the whole mess isn't quite so scary any more.

I have friends who are always up to split gas for a road trip to Portland specifically to have lunch at Red Robin - friends who don't care if the day ends up being something slightly different from what we had envisioned because it's just fun to hang out and be together.

I even have friends who worry when the temperature gets to a hundred and thirteen degrees while my husband is out of town and I'm melting in the house with limited air conditioning and three children. These are the friends who invite us over and won't take any excuses - the kind of friends who feed us dinner and give us room and board for the night in their air conditioned house, all for the price of ice cream sundae fixings.

I have friends who hold my hand, say prayers on my behalf, come to my kids' birthday parties, love my family like an extension of their own, bring meals in times of need, hold out hope for my triumphs, mourn my losses, support my endeavors, and love me for the scattered, unorganized, and hopelessly emotional mess that I am.

So yeah, I have some pretty darn good friends.