Five on Friday: Old Friends

We are getting ready to spend the next week or so with some of my bestest friends on the planet, and they are also some of my very oldest friends and I can't wait.  There is just something about being around old friends, they know you so well, yet they still love you...you can't beat that.  Some of these people I've called a friend since I was 3 or 4 years old - and some I didn't meet until 7th grade, but either way, they are near and dear to my heart and I am thrilled to be able to spend some quality time with them.  It is funny, not many of my "home" friends have families yet, but some do, and I just love seeing my friends as Parents, its an interesting dynamic to know someone for that long and now see them as a Parent.  It is also extra hard for me since I've been away so long, I haven't lived day-to-day with these guys and gals since 1997, if I could build a perfect island, they would all be on it - wouldn't that be grand?

My Five Favorite things about Old Friends:

1) They know the good, the bad and the ugly - and yet they still love you!

The boys...at our wedding.

2) They have a sense of loyalty that runs deep - and being that most of my old friends are guys, it makes me feel protected while I am around them - they wouldn't let anyone hurt me. But are usually the first to bust on me as well :)

3) Private Jokes - and by private, I don't mean that only one or two people know about them, its more of a Group Joke type of thing - either its funny sayings that used to frequent conversations, or funny movie lines that are used all the time, or quotes from Beavis & Butthead that just bring me back to high school and remind me of all the fun we had.

And they have beautiful families...that I can cherish as well.

4) Shared Favorite Things - whether its macaroni n' cheese and ginger ale for lunch, a trip to Taylors for Mixed Munch, or a Friendly's Run, I share a ton of favorite things with my oldest friends, meals that make me smile and remember good times, or going to the mall, or just doing things that we used to do together. I don't think that Bethy and I will be taking a trip to Walmart for Popcorn and an Icee, but heck, if the mood strikes us, I bet we could.

Can you believe this guy is getting married on Sunday? Can't wait!!!

5) Family - and you know their families and their families know you. I am blessed to know my college friends families and my two closest Richmond friends families as well, but not quite like I know my old friends families - they watched me grow, I was a part of their lives for many years, they are close with my family as well - its just one of those things that is hard to achieve after a certain age I guess.

PS: I have much love for all my "new" friends too :)