Double Friendiversary!!

Today is an especially historic day... because seven years ago was the Lifegroup Christmas party at the Dundees where I first met Chettles and Sarah Elizabeth.  (I'm so glad I realized that a few months ago because I would've been sad to have missed celebrating it.)  We met for an early dinner at Chipotle tonight and got a pic to commemorate the occasion!

Seven years of friendship... that's right, seven.  The perfect number! :)

Here we are on the night we met, all holding up our Dirty Santa gifts.  (I'm middle left and they're top right.)  I do remember talking to them a bit that night, trying to make sure they felt welcomed, but it was a busy and crowded party so there wasn't a lot of deep conversation happening.

A couple weeks later, I hosted a New Year's Eve 2008 party, where I specifically asked Bobbi to put Laura B. in my group since she didn't know many people.  Instead, Laura was placed in Bobbi's group (what?), and I got stuck driving the two new kids who were clearly already best friends, which annoyed me to watch as it was not too long after "the letter," and I compared every male-female friendship to that!  ...I never love driving but they assured me that taking my car was a better idea than taking Chet's, and I wasn't about to trust either of them to drive my car, which is funny to me now.  They didn't know me, so they both sat in the back together and I felt like a chauffeur.  Lamesauce, I thought to myself. lol  I was irritated but trying not to show it - I think my face betrayed me. lol  But they were quite entertaining, and it became a lot more fun as the night went on... we had to drive around and get pictures singing Christmas carols (to a random guy at Starbucks, below), making snow angels under the praying hands, hugging the Tulsa penguins, standing on a fire hydrant, etc.

Random presh Christmas penguin pic:

Chet Lee joined the Diving Deeper Lifegroup at that point, and the rest was history! :)  Somewhere between eating cookie cake while discussing Biggest Loser and him inviting me to his 21st Birthday party about seven months in advance, he quickly became one of my favorite people!  And I connected with Sarah later that same year over long, heartfelt Facebook messages about complicated emotional situations.  Good times! lol

Getting ready for our first Caravan trip ever to celebrate Chet's 21st B-day! #bootscootin'

Filling up the water balloons in Sarah's backyard for the Eugene Field summer cookout! :)

Reading composite journals at Starbucks... we all look very young and Sarah looks very Pentecostal here! lol

At Pops before heading to JoBug's to swim this summer! :)

Splash Mountain selfie! :)  We're a fun group!

One Republic & Maroon 5 Concert (ummm, Chet was there too, but on the other side of someone I had to crop out. lol)

This was how Chet felt about Eat Pray Love, minus the thumbs up.

Celebrating Sarah's graduation from nursing school (I was also there, behind the camera).

The Old School Bagel Cafe Saturday Breakfast Club (OSBCSBC). :)

I really do love all these gun pictures, ridiculous as they may be. lol

Happy happy gun day! lol #oppositeoffierce

Friendsgiving 2015 at the Wilsons' - we heart potholders! lol

 Another concert pic... my two closest friends today!

I knew that Chet Lee was fun and sarcastic and entertaining right off the bat.  Always up for a fun hangout or taking silly pictures!  I quickly learned that he is also a loyal, dependable friend who jumped in to help out whenever anyone was moving or painting or organizing a micromission!  I was impressed with his character and ambition early on, and that has not changed.  It's been awesome to watch him "grow up" in a sense, getting married and realizing some of his career dreams and fighting for new goals and inspiring us to be BOLD. :)  He's a personality match with Phil Dunphy, so it makes sense that he's an amazing realtor with an expanding business and solid plan for the future!  He's been a huge light and encouragement to me in some of my darker moments, and in addition to making me laugh more than most people, he has a lot of Godly wisdom to offer and is someone I really trust.  Like, really.  He will call you out when it's needed, and he will lift you up when you're being too hard on yourself, and I sooo value that!  On a random note, I love how easy it is to tell what he's thinking - his facial expressions always give it away. lol

Thanks for being an amazing, trustworthy friend to me, Chettles!  There are a million great memories I wouldn't trade, and I hope you know how much I value your friendship!!

Here we are in our super flattering "snow angels" under the praying hands pic. lol

Here he is all suited up to wash and QuikCrete paint my garage floor!

And here he is getting ready to help paint Sarah Elizabeth's room! :)  Ooooh, Chet Lee!! #awesomesauce

Which brings us to Sarah.  Or Sarah Elizabeth or Sarah Bear or Sarah Lee - I like them all!  She and I had been friends for several years and always had a good connection and deep/fun/real conversations, but she was out of state for Bible college and then super busy with nursing school, so our time together was pretty sporadic.  We've grown a lot closer over the past couple years, and she's just one of my favorite people.  Very compassionate and caring, hilarious and quirky, and again, a real friend who is honest and trustworthy!  I love that she stepped out of a controlling, manipulative church setting and embraced her freedom in Christ, choosing to set healthy boundaries that don't let others manipulate her.  I also love that she fought for her goals and worked hard to get through nursing school and become a "tall, curvy, educated woman." ;-)  She has an incredibly difficult job and sees heartbreaking or rage-inducing things on a regular basis... but I know she is living out her calling as a PICU Nurse.  And I'm grateful for her heart and service there, and always happy to listen when she needs to debrief or vent a little!  ...Or I could just buy her a new Disney coloring book to help her de-stress. ;-)

Thank you for being a sincere and caring friend, Sarah Elizabeth!  I love you and all our fun memories together, and I'm grateful that we've really connected!!

Here she is giving me a mini cooking class in 2010.  (I was legitimately wearing those oven mitts, not just to be cute for the picture. lol)  How cute are we!?  #totespresh #shehatesthat

And here we are on "Free Tea Day" earlier this year, after meeting for breakfast when she got off work!! :)

Alllllll of that to say, I'm very thankful that God (and Bobbi) put us in a Scavenger Hunt group together seven long years ago!  #whenwewereyoung ;-)

We've been through a lot of major life events and highs and lows together... friends through thick and thin (pun intended).  I think we'll be awesome friends for many years to come... as long as we don't accidentally kill each other first. ;-)  #realguns #notourbrightestidea

Okay, I'm done now.  Happy seven-year Double Friendiversary!!! =)