THAT friend...

Do you have THAT friend...you know, the one you lost touch with years ago but you still think about? THAT friend who you miss sharing things with? THAT friend who you would love to call but you feel that it's been too long and you might not know what to say? THAT friend who you can't even remember why you stopped being friends?

For me, THAT friend is Vanessa.

A little bit of history:

Vanessa and I met in Kindergarten in Daisy Group (the prequel to Brownies which is the prequel to Girl Scouts) and became instant friends. It helped that we went to the same school (Collier Elementary - go Cougars!). We were BFFs long before it was cool to talk in acronyms.

Through 6th grade and into 7th we were BFFs. We did everything that BFFs do and then some, including:

• sleepovers/all-nighters
• running our own "radio station" (the early version of The Good, The Bad, and The Gossip)
• attending the Alan Jackson concert together
• nights at Lakeside Sports Complex while her parents bowled
• hanging out at the park
• talking/dreaming about the future in which she was going to be a nurse and I was going to be a teacher and we were going to get married to handsome brothers and have babies

We kept up with the latest hair and make-up styles (circa 1992).

We celebrated the important days with laughter and smiles (circa 1993).

And we prepared to part ways as middle school approached. I was supposed to attend St. Cyril and she was attending Magee with the rest of our friends.

As it turned out, I didn't go to St. Cyril (that's another story for another day) and I went to Magee also! Vanessa and I were thrilled that we would be at the same school (circa 1994).

But, as frequently happens in middle school, we drifted apart. We were growing and maturing in different ways and we both found new friends. Sometimes I think of how different my middle school years would have been if Vanessa and I had stayed BFFs, but I digress.

In high school we did part ways as I went to Salpointe and she went to Sabino. Distance and busy lives made us drift further and further apart. We wrote a few letters and heard how each was doing through the grape-vine but, alas, these were the days before facebook.

So after meeting and becoming friends about 22 years ago, Vanessa became THAT friend. The one that I missed and wanted to reconnect with (actually the one I wished I had never lost touch with, but since there is no such thing as a Hot Tub Time-Machine, that is not possible) and thanks to facebook, we were able to do just that!

Which brings me to today!

This afternoon Shyla and I met Vanessa and her adorable 20 month son, Mikey, at the water park for some fun-in-the-sun!

My beautiful friend, Vanessa, and her son (circa 2010).

Shyla (a rare shot of her wearing her hat) and Mikey "playing together."

Shyla doing her thing in the splash pad; notice she would rather hold her hat than wear it!

And Vanessa with the babies!

As I am sure you have guessed, Vanessa and I didn't marry handsome brothers. But, we both have handsome husbands who are both goof-balls and, thus, we can't wait to get them together. Vanessa is, in fact, a nurse and I am, in fact, a teacher and we both, quite obviously, have babies.

It's too bad that we have missed the last decade (or more, yikes!) of each other's lives but I am thrilled that we are friends again. I look forward to many more playdates, get-togethers, and fun with THAT friend!

Moral of the Story:

Keep your friends at any cost. But if you do lose touch, the good friends will come back easily.