Best Friends

What would we ever do if best friends had never been invented! Some of our best friends may date back for decades to friends we made in school, whether it be grade school or college. Those friends are the ones that have stuck by you through thick and thin. They were there to hold your hand at times of trouble. They were there to support you through all the tough decisions you had to make. They were there to laugh with you initially at the funny things you did. Such as setting all the clocks in Woolworth's to go off at the same time or tying kites to your bikes and then riding like mad to make them fly. Then they are there to laugh every time you reminisce about those days gone by. They were there to share your joys when you were young. As the years go by, they continue to be close still, even if it's by means of a phone call or through email. They continue to share our ups and downs. It is amazing that those friendships can continue to grow after a quarter or more of a century.

Then you have the friends you make as your progress through your life. They come into your life when you need them most. When I think back on my friends, I am amazed that life brought us together exactly at the times I needed them. They support us through times we never thought we could get through. They shared their stories with us and we saw similarities to our own lives. Those friendships continued to build. At times, it may have been as though we had resorted back to our teen years as we did some very silly things with those friends. Those things would include doing cartwheels to cheer you up, toilet papering friends homes, and dancing like we were sixteen (even though we knew we'd feel it in the morning). They were the ones we'd stay up talking with into the wee hours of the early morn. Those friends help us grow in our adult years. They help us look at situations from a different perspective. They help us through some major changes sometimes, changes in our lives we never expected to face. They bring life back into our lives through their kindness and love. Sometimes it may be as simple as their warm smile or gentle touch. Those friends are there also for us when we need them. They may understand us better then we understand ourselves.

We also are fortunate as we grow older to have our siblings and our children become our friends. When we were growing up, sometimes we liked having our siblings tag along, other times we did not. Sometimes we were the ones tagging along, and we were the ones picked on. When our children were growing up, we were their moms. We had to set limits and curfews. Sometimes they didn't agree with us and sometimes they didn't like us. But we knew it was not a popularity contest raising our children, so we continued to set limits. As they grew, we began to release responsibility to them and we became proud of who they grew into. Now as adults, we can call our sisters, brothers, daughters and sons our friends. We have learned to call on them for help when we need it and share our inner most thoughts with them. It is so wonderful that someone we watched grow, someone we shared our youth with, someone we nurtured through all their trials and victories, now we can call our friend. Even though we may not see them as often as we like, we can always pick up where we left off the last time we were together and carry on as if it were just yesterday.

Girlfriends

GARDENS - The picture of the iris is from my garden this spring.

Well, most of my girlriends live in Minnesota. In Minnesota, we really appreciate our gardens, for the growing season in the northern United States can be short. For that reason, we spend a lot of time (once the ground thaws out) working in our gardens. We spend many hours at the local garden shops looking for the perfect flowers and then come home to get them in the ground. Then we water, weed, and fertilize so we can sit back and sip a cool drink and look out at our accomplishments. We love the colors in our gardens of pinks, purples and blues. Of reds, oranges and yellows surronded by seas of green and white. We work to get our hanging baskets looking just right, and spend time pinching off the old buds of our geraniums, petunias and roses.

This year I decided to enlarge my perenial garden, so I asked Mark to enlarge it a little for me. Well, it ended up being larger than I had planned, but in the long run, it will be well worth it. I spent about an hour one day selecting some perenial plants for the one end of the garden. I also had a container of 'wildflower seeds' that I sprinkled in that end of the garden. Well, now those seeds have started to sprout, but now I don't know which are flowers and which are weeds, so I'll have to let them grow a bit more. You know how it is, the weeds grow faster than the flowers, so I figure they will soon be a foot tall and the flowers will only be several inches tall, then I can do some weeding.

I also tried some Preen this year in my perenial garden to try and keep the weeds down. If any of you have any suggestions for the weeds, share your ideas. I also bought one of those attachments for the hose where you can attach the liquid Miracle Gro. I LOVE IT!! I have used it twice now. It so so much easier than mixing, carrying and watering each flower bed. It delivers the water in a nice shower (which you can change if you wish)and you can also use the attachment for just watering. It has a off valve so it makes it easy to walk from garden to garden to water.

I hope everyone has some time to get out and work in their gardens. It is relaxing and a great way to get in touch with nature.

Monica

BATTLE OF THE BULGE

Okay, I have been battling the bulge for many more years than I care to remember. I hope that through this BLOG I can get and give support to my girlfriends that face the same battle. I would like you to share your best tips for dieting, losing weight, and excercising. My girlfriends come from a variety of careers, age, and education. I know that together, we can probably post some of the best ideas for losing or maintaing our weight. We can do this without the cost of joining a weight loss center or group. So my challenge for you today is tell me your best tips for losing weight, dieting or excercise. I'll start.........

MEASURING
Measure your portions. It is the best way to be sure you are eating the correct amount. With many items this is as simple as using a measuring cup. DON'T GUESS AT PORTION SIZES! It does take a little time, but is is so worth it. Once you get in the practice of measuring your portions, it will become part of your meal prepartion routine. The other measurement tool is a scale. These can be purchased at any kitchen store. They vary in price range, but are relatively inexpensive and the only way to measure meat portions. I am making a commitment to myself to buy myself a new scale (I use to have one, but have no idea where it is), and I will use it along with measuring cups to measure all the foods that I eat. There, it's in writing now so hold me accountable and ask about my measuring next time we meet or chat online.

Celebration

I know that many of my girlfriends out there have many great things to celebrate. I created this blog to help us all celebrate ALL of our accomplishments. I know that many of my girlfriends could use a little pat ont the back from time to time to 'Celebrate our Successes'. I want all my girlfriends to respond with something they have done recently that they are proud of. Let's start by telling of something you did in the past couple of weeks that made you feel good. This could be something you did for yourself or for someone else.

Okay, I'll start. I am proud of starting my BLOG. I feel that through this BLOG we will be able to keep in touch, celebrate our successes, and share our frustrations. I hope to hear from all of you and hope you will contribute your thoughts and respond to the postings of others.

Monica