Friend: A person who _____?

Friend:

n.

1. A person whom one knows, likes, and trusts.

2. A person whom one knows; an acquaintance.

3. A person with whom one is allied in a struggle or cause; a comrade.

4. One who supports, sympathizes with, or patronizes a group, cause, or movement

How would YOU define a friend? If you could describe a friend in just a few short words, what would they be? And, would your phrase be a completely different one for each one of your friends? Maybe some of your phrases would be something like: a good listener, someone who can keep secrets, someone I can count on, a person I can trust, a person I like to be around, someone with similar interests and/or beliefs, a person I care for, someone I go to for advice, a person I have connected with because of similar circumstances, someone who is there for me when I need it...I could go on! I bet with each of these phrases someone in particular came in mind, or perhaps they all describe that one person in your life, possibly your best friend? Of course a friend can be described on more simpler terms as well. Maybe someone you have met just a few times that you can hold a conversation with, but  you wouldn't necessarily tell them your latest and greatest secret. This word has been on my mind a lot lately for many reasons, but I won't go into detail about that.

One of the neat things about being a military wife is all the many (different kind of) friends you make along your journey of moving here and there and everywhere across the globe. It's scary at first moving somewhere new. Most of the time you do it all on your own, without family and friends to hold your hand as your jump into a new town (or state or country!), a new schedule, new schools, new jobs, new church, new people and really just a whole new life. For the first few months you are unpacking boxes, organizing your house, figuring out schedules and where to go for this and that, learning the new street names and where the best place to get a cup of coffee is, because honestly, a good cup of coffee is a major priority if you want to keep your sanity.  Then once shop is set up and a few months go by and you settle into your routine and you feel like you finally have a hold on this new life, you realize, you are in desperate need of a friend. And the whole cycle of making new friends starts all over again. Sure, you've done it once, or twice, or like me, 7 times, but it never gets any easier.

The thing about friends is that the word really is a broad spectrum as far as how close you are to someone and how well you really know them. You can have just met someone a week ago, ran into them twice and from there on out start referring to them as your friend. Or, you can have known someone your whole life, know all their secrets; the good, the bad, the ugly about them and call them a friend too. This is what I love about friends.

With all the moves we have hurdled over and successfully accomplished, I have found that God has brought to me a specific friend or a couple friends that met my very needs at that time. It can become really lonely as a military wife when your husband is gone and you still have all the duties of taking care of the kids, the house, the cars, etc, and then you are also picking up the slack and are responsible for all that he is when he is home. Life goes on when they are gone. It doesn't come to a complete halt. Diapers still need to be changed, the bills still need to be paid, the dishes still have to be done, the kids still have to get up for school and so on. This is where the importance of a friend comes in. One thing the military life has taught me is to put yourself out there and make friends! It's really hard and awkward at first, but we need all sorts of friends in this time of our life to meet our different needs. When it comes to needing help, or someone you can vent to; you may have one or two friends, or you may have twenty. Take a moment and think about these friends. What would life be like without them? How would you cope with certain situations? Who would you talk to, lean on or ask for help?

What's awesome about the military is having friends (literally) all over the world. Yes, I have many friends, some closer then others, some who know things about me that others don't, some who have been through certain situations with me that others might not even know about, some who would get that inside joke and some who wouldn't. But what's really cool about the word friend, is that because of such a broad definition of the word, I get to call a lot of people "friend". I'm so thankful for all my friends. They have all helped shape me into the person I am today. I have memories of each one that I get to cherish forever, or continue making memories with right now. I get to call each and every one of them a friend for a different reason.

Sure, being in the military is hard, it's emotional, it's stressful, it's painful, but all of these awesome people in my life I get to call a friend make it worth it! Friends are an amazing gift. I know I am very thankful for the people that God has brought into my life.

So, how would you describe a friend? Or, better yet, how would YOU like to be described AS a friend???

Goodnight,

Susan

Pearl Harbor

In honor of the recent D-Day anniversary, I thought I would post some photos I took at Pearl Harbor 2 weeks ago. It was a touching experience for sure. Walking through the memorials and reading about the specific events that happened that day was heartbreaking. Being a military wife and an American, I am so very proud of our service men and women, as I am everyday; but walking on that very ground that was attacked like no other in history, brought even more of a deeper sense of pride and appreciation for what happened that day. I hope you enjoy these photos, and remember to count your blessings and be grateful for this amazing and free country we live in; thanks of those who have served and still serve today.



Ford Island

U.S.S. Arizona Memorial, built over the sunken ship

The U.S.S. Arizona ship, underwater

The men and women who are forever at rest in the sunken U.S.S. Arizona

7 down, 1 to go!

So, I don't really have a photo for this post, and it has nothing to do with photography. But, it's a big deal {to me} so I thought I'd write about it.

My husband has been gone {for training} for 7 weeks now, and will be coming home in 1 short week! Some days it seems like it has gone by fast and other days it feels like he has been gone for forever. It's always hard to be away from each other for an extended amount of time; especially with 3 kids, a dog and a house to take care of, but these breaks from our normal-every-day-married-life are what I feel makes our marriage stronger. We get to experience that excitement of seeing each other, those butterflies when we embrace for the first time in months, and that silly grin I can't get off my face when I'm on the way to pick him up. It's also really neat watching the excitement on our children's faces when they get to see daddy for the first time in what seems like forever to them.

Other exciting news...during these last months I have been participating in a "Biggest Looser" challenge on Facebook with some friends, and with all the hard work and dedication I won first place! It was my first time participating, so I was pretty hard on myself to do my best. I can't exactly say how much I've lost; my husband knows I was doing the contest, but I haven't told him how many pounds I shed, let's just say it's in the double digits.

My friend and I are planning on going shopping this week...good thing because my clothes are now too big, AND hubby and I are going to HAWAII when he gets back! The sun, the sand, the warmth, my man....I can't wait! We are luckily able to go without the kids since my mom is here visiting and very graciously will be watching them for us. I guess this will be a {year and a half} early 10 year anniversary get away :)

Well, so much excitement going on here lately, I just had to share....

I have had a few photo shoots lately and am coming up with some fun ideas in the area of prints and products I {will} offer.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend and HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

~Susan