Category Archives: Friendship

When Family Meets Family

[Guest Blogger - College Sophomore, Rachel]

I had been talking about my family for weeks. They were coming to Jackson for Josh’s wedding which was going to be held a few minutes away from Union. I had to appropriately prep my friends for their arrival, so I passed around pictures, recited names and ages, and frantically waved my hands in excitement at any mention of parents or siblings. My friends soon learned my siblings’ names and their stories; they even knew the names of our two cats. (Who would not be present at the wedding, but were important nonetheless.)

In turn I couldn’t wait to introduce my family to all my friends attending the wedding and to show them Union, my home away from home.

Our first photo as friends!

Our first photo as friends!

In the weeks leading up to winter break, my roommate Karis and I discussed our post final/pre wedding plans. Her parents had generously volunteered to let me stay with them until I was able to move into the hotel with my family. It was so hard to believe that my best friend in college had never met my family. We had already been through so much together; it felt like we had known each other for most of our lives.

Trips with this girl are my favorite

Trips with this girl are my favorite

I got off the phone the night of the 13th, the night before my mom, Michelle (her bff), and Mamie were to arrive. “Was that mom?” Karis asked, sticking her head out of her room curiously. I loved that she was already accepting my family as hers.

I already adored her family after spending Spring break with them last semester, so of course I was thrilled for her to finally meet mine.

The second Karis got off of work, she rushed over to where my three “parents” and I were waiting. The first moments were filled with “hellos” and hugs and wide grins. The five of us then waltzed off to dinner where Karis made a hilarious first impression. We all laughed so hard I think they considered asking us to leave. A successful first night indeed!

bffs

bffs

(A few days later of course I also dragged my three jet lagged siblings out of their beds to meet her, but that’s a story for another day.)

Family! (Only missing Michelle)

Family! (Only missing Michelle)

Union has become my home away from home, and those there have become my family. I am so very grateful.

College is hard, and having someone alongside you to grow with is vital. Karis, thank you for being my roommate, thank you for standing beside me, for growing with me, and for being someone I can tell everything to. Thank you for understanding how much I love to yell, thank you for encouraging me, and thank you for always laughing at my jokes. Thank you for being forgiving and kind, thank you for accepting me for who I am, but still pushing me to be better. Thank you for being my best friend.
P.S. (I still love you more than coffee.)

xoxo

Project 365 – Day 348 (Dec 14)
Rachel

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Christmas Brunch

One of my favorite events of the year is the women’s Christmas luncheon. Our simple gymnasium is transformed into a winter wonderland, with incredible table displays and beautifully dressed women. Each year we gather to sing Christmas carols, eat delicious food, laugh and visit, and listen to a special message. I had the sweet opportunity to speak in 2009. It was a humbling, joyful honor.

This year, because of the blessings and growth in our church, the annual celebration became not one, but two events – a brunch in the morning and a tea in the afternoon. Both affairs were lovely! Tricia Knack, our speaker, shared some of her story of New Beginnings. As usual, the men served the meal and catered to our needs for hot coffee, water, and seconds on the yummy brunch treats.

My colorful table this year - Tim was our private server!

My colorful table this year – missed getting a picture of Tim as our waiter.

Michelle helped me find the gorgeous silver chargers and place holders. I LOVED my bright, jewel toned table theme. Makes me smile!

Our annual Christmas bff picture.

Our annual Christmas picture.

Love seeing the different tables.

Michelle's table - David was her server.  :)

Michelle’s table – David was her server. :)

Of course, being with some of my favorite friends is the BEST part of the Christmas brunch.

Tricia, Michelle and Beckie

Tricia, Michelle and Beckie

Loved having Trisha at my table this year.

Loved having Trisha at my table this year.

So many different table styles.

Creative AND beautiful!

Creative AND beautiful!

The room was full of smiling faces, sweet friends, neighbors and family members.

Lynn, Panida, Sue and Judy - such wonderful, dear friends.

Lynn, Panida, Sue and Judy – such wonderful, dear friends.

Krystal managed to share the day with her daughter AND her sister.  Blessed!

Krystal managed to share the day with her daughter AND her sister. Blessed!

Stunning

Stunning

LC3′s Christmas Brunch/Tea is always the first Saturday of December. It is a wonderful way to usher in the holiday season. I am so thankful for the women God has placed in my life.

Shari and I went with gold to complement Tricia and Michelle in grey/silver.

Shari and I went with gold to complement Tricia and Michelle in grey/silver.

Project 365 – Day 339 (Dec 5)
Kathy

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For You, Daniel

Today we are here to feature a few of Daniel’s Favorite Things

Cause we’re thinking of you, and we miss you, Daniel!!

wpid-20150910_130118.jpg

Friends – Daniel’s good friend, James, came over to visit David today

Games – David and James played DC Comics Deck Building, pretty much Daniel’s favorite board game.

Food – and they all ate homemade mac n’ cheese. Definitely Daniel’s favorite side dish of all time. He once got a huge pan of it as a Christmas present (top gift of the year).

Sport – not just any Frisbee for Ultimate, but a Worldview Frisbee.

This blog post is for you, Danny Boy! We miss you. The only thing we forgot was a can of ReddiWhip and some Minecraft. LOL!

Hope you’re having a great time at school!

Project 365 – Day 253
Kathy

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Double Date

I recently resumed the practice of reporting weekly on my goals.

This took quite a bit of gumption, since I’ve not been in the habit of reviewing my goals this year — and as Dee Duke says, a goal that is not reviewed is not much of a goal. There is a strange correlation between reviewing goals and actually pursuing them; you’d think by now I would have caught on to this.

Anyway, I started reporting on my goals, and the first week I earned a rather low (unweighted) score of 38%. This means that I managed to complete only slightly more than one third of the things that I had decided were important for me to do.

(Parenthetically, this is one of the most annoying things about goals. It would be one thing if goals were brutally imposed by oppressive, external forces; but when you set your own goals and still can’t achieve them, it is just sort of pathetic.)

So as soon as I sent the email reporting the abysmal 38% score, I determined to do better. Surely I could improve to at least 50%, I wondered?

One of my goals is to celebrate a date night with my Sweetie each week. It doesn’t seem like a very hard goal, but you would be surprised how quickly a week can go by without remembering to date your Sweetie. So this week I decided in advance that it would be Friday night. Kathy and I usually don’t have anything going on that night, and that would give me all week to plan.

It looked pretty, if I do say so myself.  OK, at least the girls were pretty.

It looked pretty, if I do say so myself. OK, at least the girls were pretty.

Except I forgot to plan. I’m not a big planner, in any case, and it was Friday morning before I knew it. Hurriedly, I rummaged around in my brain for a good idea, like the way you might rummage around in a spilled bag of candy, hoping for one that wasn’t noticed by those who came before you.

And then it hit me — why not a double date with some of our friends? Now that so many of our kids are grown and gone off to college, maybe Kathy and I could pretend to be grown up ourselves, and have a date with another married couple! Kathy has a lot of good girlfriends, and I really like a lot of their husbands, so it seemed like a good idea.

A couple of years ago, we got together with seven other couples and cooked a meal together, with the men divided into two teams and competing for the best entree with randomly assigned ingredients. It took hours for us to actually produce a meal, with some rather interesting results, but as a social event, it was a smashing success.

So I decided to trade on that achievement, and texted my friend Chris.

“How ’bout we double-date with our wives, tonight,” I offered. “We can whip up a meal for them, and then watch a movie or something. My house. Sound good?”

Chris quickly jumped on the band wagon. Did I mention he is an accomplished chef? So we cooked a delicious meal of grilled chicken and brown rice, with peppers and zucchini and onions and a few small tomatoes, all brushed with oil and sizzling on the grill. I set the table complete with tablecloth, cloth napkins, a candlestick, and crystal water goblets.

So delicious!

So delicious!

We sat and talked about our children (what else do old married people talk about?) and then watched a movie — it was a very pleasant evening! I think this whole date night thing might be worth continuing. Stay tuned for next week’s installment.

Project 365, Day 247
Tim

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Weeding Girls

By Sarah

This week, I am an only child, seeing that Josh, Rach, and Dan are in college and David is in California. I’ve been pretty lonely. It’s been fun having Mom and Dad all to myself, but it is more fun when you have someone else to share them with.

But, don’t worry, because I have Tarah.

Tarah is such a joy in my life

Tarah is such a joy in my life

I’ve known Tarah since I was three years old, and we are still best friends. Tarah is so fun to be with, and I constantly find myself laughing when I’m around her. I am thankful that she is in my life.

We're always laughing

She's so fun to be with

So today, when she came over, Mom (of course) put us to work.

Weeding.

Let’s just say I’m not exactly enthusiastic when it comes to any sort of yard work. I don’t mind weeding too much, but I’d rather clean inside. When Mom informed us of our new job, Tarah jumped up and said, “Oh, I love weeding! I do it for fun sometimes!” So we went to work. Sometimes you need a friend to make a job fun. After a while of not-so-steady weeding and more talking, we finally finished.

Weeding around the beautiful flowers

Weeding around the beautiful flowers

Soon, David will be home, but for now, I suffer being an only child.

~ Sarah <3
Project 365 – Day 238

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