Love and the Country

I wrote a blog post a couple of years ago titled “Now and Then” about the friendships I have. I have been wanting to write more about my friendships, but never really stopped to take the time to think of exactly what I wanted to write or how I wanted to incorporate that into my blog. Well, about a week ago I was chatting with my friend Amanda, and she mentioned how in the show “Sex and the City,” the friends would get together for coffee or lunch and catch up. She suggested that we do that, and her eyes lit up at the idea of us having our own “Sex and the City” moment! Amanda, as she often does, inspired me to write about some of our experiences, and I thought I could be the modern day “Carrie Bradshaw!”

I am sticking with my themes, but you can look forward to these segments which I will write randomly. They will be posted as inspiration strikes, and I will share stories about my friendships and experiences. I am not going to get into as much detail about their personal lives as Carrie does with her friends, because I don’t feel it’s my place, but if something is really funny, or really powerful, with their consent, of course, I may share a few of those with you.

Amanda and I had our first coffee date last Sunday, and it was so nice to just sit and talk with her and catch up on each other’s lives, but I can’t wait till we can spend a whole day together, and I am looking forward to our monthly coffee or lunch dates!

I recently found out that Oakland is getting a record store! This excited me tremendously, because I am currently in search of a vintage turntable, but I want one similar to the one I had in the late 80’s. I don’t want one that has to be hooked up to bluetooth, because that’s still a digital sound. I want to hear the crackle of the vinyl, I want to have to listen to the whole album, I want to mentally be transferred back in time, because I’m an old soul who loves vintage things, and I love that sound you get from vinyl! I started thinking about getting up on a Saturday, meeting my best friend for coffee at Cornish Cafe, and then walking over to the record store and a few of the other local shops!

I am so excited to start this segment, and since most of my girlfriends are either married or in serious relationships, and we live in a very rural area, I am going to call these segments “Love and the Country.”

Thank you Amanda and “Sex and the City” for the inspiration.

Meet the Girls:

Kristian – Yours truly. I am the writer, I even do it for a living, writing grants! I am very easily amused, I have a very vast taste in a lot of areas, which you will learn more and more about as I continue to write in this blog (not just Love and the Country segments.) I am a nerd, bookworm, and hopeless romantic. My style is all over the place, but you will learn more about that as well as I talk about wardrobe purchases, my love of shoes, my dream home, etc…

Amanda -The Watson to my Sherlock! She keeps me grounded, allows me to vent, and isn’t afraid to speak the harsh truth when I need to hear it. She is my person! Other than my husband, no one quite gets me like Amanda. Amanda is the artist. She is a free spirit, God-loving woman, and also a hopeless romantic. She understands my love of music, and while she enjoys reading, I wouldn’t exactly call her a bookworm. Although, if she had more free time she might be. Let me tell you a little bit about this super woman! Amanda home schools her son, works two days a week as a Dental Hygienist, grows a garden, keeps chickens, makes time every day to spend with her husband when he’s home, he travels a lot of work, keeps a home, and still manages to make time for her extended family and friends! She is my heroine!

April – The peanut butter to my jelly! April is my work buddy, but I’ve known her for a long time. April is the “badass” of the group. She isn’t afraid to speak her mind, she tells it like it is, and if you don’t like it, she really doesn’t care. If one is acting immature or being a jerk, April will call them out on it! This is something I greatly admire about her! April is into photography, she’s an awesome mommy to a handsome son and beautiful daughter. April and her husband have had their share of ups and downs, especially recently, but their love conquers all of it, and is worth applauding! She and I have a lot of differences, but we also have a lot of similarities, and I love her like family!

Ashley – The other half of me (other than my husband.) Ashley and I have been friends since we were 5! She has pretty much been with me my whole life. Ashley is a beautiful soul, she wouldn’t hurt a fly. She is a God-loving, stay at home mommy! She is married to a great man who works hard so that she can have her dream job of staying home and taking care of their beautiful little girl! Like me, Ashley also has vast taste in many different areas, and I’m sure you will learn more about that as I write about her and our friendship!

These are the women I am closest to, the ones I turn to first when I need advice, need someone to lean on, or just need a break from the mundane. They hold a piece of my heart, and I can say with a hundred percent certainty that they will be with me for the rest of my life. I may not see any of these ladies as often as I’d like, but we will still find time to make memories together, we will still always be there for one another and I love these girls with my whole heart! These ladies will be mentioned more than any others because they are the ones I see and talk to the most.

There are a few others that will be mentioned, I’m sure, and you can look forward to our stories as well, because I am also close to these women, but they live further away and I don’t see them all that often, but I know you will still read about our relationships and why I love them so much! Those women are:

Mary, Cathryn, Caitlyn, and Amanda C. – All of these beautiful ladies are my cousins. We have a lot in common, I love their personalities, their nerdiness, and their good hearts! I visit them as often as I can. I never pass up an opportunity to hang out with them, and I am planning a New York trip with Cathryn next year, so you can look forward to hearing all about that adventure!

Jonet – My sister-in-law, all the way in California. Needless to say, I don’t get to see her as often as I’d like, but she is my sister, and I love her more than words can say. She is an amazing wife to my brother, and mother to my absolutely gorgeous nieces. (I’m not being biased, they are two of the most beautiful teen girls I know.)

Aunt Nancy – My 2nd mom. She and I are very close, and have grown even closer since my mom has passed. I can’t wait to create many more memories with her as I continue to grow as a person.

Christen and Laura Beth – Both of these ladies live far away, but like Amanda, they understand me on another level, and they just “get” me. Of course, part of that is because we are so much a like it’s not even funny! Seriously, these girls are my soul sisters! It’s uncanny how many similarities we have! Laura Beth and I even have similar past’s, great parents, fantastic fun-filled childhoods, horrible exes, and amazing husbands who showed us what it’s really like to be loved! Her and Al’s story is very similar to mine and Neil’s.

Honorable mentions: Marcia, Khristyn, Jen T., Devynn, Michele, Shirley, Nicole, Denise, Cindy, and Jen R. These are women that I admire, work with, and/or cherish dearly, but we either don’t really hang out outside of work, or I don’t see them very often, maybe once or twice a year. (If that) 😦

You will also read about numerous aunts on Neil’s side and grandma! I’m very close to them as well, and I’m sure they will appear in many of these segments!

Wow, writing this really put things into perspective! I’m sorry this post is so long, but how fortunate am I to have so many people in my life who I care for and also care about me?

Maybe for my next post, I will introduce the guys! I hope you are looking forward to reading this. I am so excited to write it!

Love and life lessons,

Kristian