Ladies Night

About ten minutes ago I received a beautiful email from one of my "girlfriends" and it made me stop and say a prayer of thanksgiving. You might ask why? Well 20 years ago my dear friend Debbie got married and wanted to use her new dishes, silverware and glasses she got as wedding gifts. Kevin was traveling on business so she invited me and four other girlfriends to dinner. Oh what fun we had eating, sharing stories and just enjoying each others company.

So was born Ladies Night in September 1988. So this morning when I opened an email from Debbie and click on the link "girlfriends" I was transported to every ladies night we have shared over the last 20 years. I don't think any of us on that September night had any idea that we would still be going strong 20 years later.

In 1988 my daughter was nine years old and Debbie was our only married woman...she now has five children and the oldest will be graduating from high school this year. We have had only one change to our group and that was when Marissa announced she was moving back east. So we decided she should pick her replacement and we had the one and only "oven mitt hand-off" ceremony. We miss Marissa very much and she has made it back out here twice. Once when Cheryl got married and we had our first slumber party/bacheloret party at my house and then again when we celebrated our 10th anniversary by having a sleep over at Embassy Suites. We could not have picked a better replacement than Norma who is our "God Rock" and keeps us focused on His blessings by leading us in prayer every time we come together.

As of today, two of us are single and four are married, we have collectively 12 children and one grandchild. We have laughed and cried together, we have agonized over raising our children together, we have held each other as we have lost grandparents, parents and siblings. We have celebrated births, baptisms, 1st communions, a quinceañera, confirmations, graduations and weddings. We had to stand by and watch one our own give back a beautiful baby boy when the state decided he should go to one of his birth parents instead of staying in the loving environment he had been in for over a year and then watch as God blessed her with another little guy who has added so much joy to her family. We have learned more than we ever wanted to know about adoption, foster care and neonatal units. We have formed a bond stronger than anything man could make and we know who has our back!

We all have other friends and groups we do things with and as the years pass we may only see each other when we gather for Ladies Night once a month, but we know that in this crazy busy world we live in that if we needed someone or something we would be there for each other in a heart beat.

So this morning when I should be working I am taking a moment to say THANK YOU for the five women who know me better than anyone and who have stood by me through all my good times and bad. God bless and see you tomorrow night!