Friends. Everyone has them. Do you lump them into categories like I do? (I tend to categorize everything…it’s an OCD thing. Monk and I have a lot in common.)I’m not so great at the whole friend thing. I don’t have a lot of natural trust in people which kind of makes having and keeping friends tough. But I have managed to find some who will put up with me. I have colleagues/acquaintances. These are people I work with or know through work or through my kids. I see them fairly often; know a bit about them and generally like them. I would happily help them out if needed but I wouldn’t call them in an emergency or plan a girls’ night out with them. I have my commando preggo friend. (She’s 8 months pregnant and I promise she is the only pregnant woman I know who has a six pack on top of her preggo belly. You gotta see it to believe it. She’s planning on a natural/hypno birth. She isn’t going to have time for that…She’s going to pop that baby out with her abs of steel alone!) She’s my workout buddy and we discuss a range of topics while we work out. She has also become a good friend that I trust and those are hard to find. I have a lupus/medication friend that gets it…enough said. I have a few long time friends that I rarely talk to but I know if I called them this minute with an emergency they would come running. (Thanks, Kristi!) I have my grad school buddies who share their homework with me when I am behind. (Please no comments…yes, I know cheating is wrong….whatever.) They also understand how crazy it can be to be in grad school while working full time and raising a family. They also pray for me and with me. Wow…that’s a benefit of grad school that I didn’t expect. I have my family and they are friends of a different sort. They know me, really know me and have to love me anyway cause we’re related. Poor things...they are stuck with me. Then I have two friends who are my secret keepers. One’s a female and one’s a male. (I had a friend who said it wasn’t possible to be friends with a guy. Whatever. I found new friends.) My female friend (girl friend was just too much of a stretch for me!)and I share normal mom stuff, preteens, hormones, how to raise boys, etc. We also share some other stuff that just can’t be blogged about. We both have times that we wish we were somewhere else. (Doesn’t everyone?)That leaves my guy friend. This friend and I seem to share the same brain waves. We think way too much alike and he knows way too many of my secrets. But he keeps them (I think) and he makes me laugh…a lot. (He thinks he sucks at friendship…I disagree.)

Today I am thankful for friends...especially for my friend Mary who stepped way out on a limb just for me!