Let’s Look

Hello!

Well, as usual, I can’t believe it’s already the second Wednesday of the month. That being said, since this week is spring break, I’m happy that it’s a different kind of Wednesday!

I’m linking up with Shay and Erika for Let’s Look.

So far this year, we’ve looked at…

• Low level goals for 2025 in January
• How you work on your marriage in February
• How you reset for the week on Sunday in March

This month’s topic is…maintaining friendships.

First and foremost, I’m so thankful for my friends. At this point in life, I have work friends, neighbors who are friends, friends from my kids’ activities, “Mom” friends and my truest friends are probably the core group of use whose kids hang out together the most.

I have a “core group” at school and I have a “core group” of friends like the ones we travel with for fall break. These are the same people who I can depend on for carpool, call when I’m worried about something, vent to, have a glass of wine with, play a card game, and so much more.

Occasionally, we’ll get together to play a game or reconnect in the summer at the pool. We stay in touch mostly via text messaging just organizing rides for our kids, sharing sports schedules, planning a time to get together, or bumping into each other at the gym or while out for a walk.

Trav has friends from his childhood and even college who he’s very close with, and they’d do anything for each other. Many of those friends’ wives were my first friends when I moved to Kentucky, and I will always be grateful for their warm welcome when I knew no one after moving here. Sometimes, I wished I’d been able to maintain closer friendships with high school and college friends.

When I moved to Lexington when I did, I barely had a cell phone, and Facebook wasn’t a thing. Then, like what happens in life, you just get busy and time slips away. Also, KC isn’t just a few hours away…it’s nine! So, when I get to KC, it’s usually just for a few days, and I end up spending time with family. I love keeping up with childhood and college friends thanks to social media and texts, so it does feel like we’re connected in that way.

Once the kids hit school age, it was very important for me to be in a neighborhood in which we wouldn’t want to move, would have great schools, be close to whatever we need, and more. I moved when I was in the 7th grade, and it all ended up being ok…but middle school is a hard phase in life to move. I wanted the kids to have the same friends from kindergarten like Trav did, and we moved to this house the year before they started kindergarten.

I know friendships change, but both of my kids have a really solid group of friends, and some of their parents are some of my best friends. I appreciate our “mom gang” group text as well as the smaller group texts too. Right now, the “middle school moms” group text, that isn’t used as often these days, is a buzz with the driving permit info. It’s just nice to know that there are so many awesome people I can turn to if I need anything from a cup of sugar to a car ride for my kids.

In some ways, right now it’s hard to maintain friendships just being busy with all the kids’ activities. That being said, I know true friends will always be there. I still have great friends whose kids don’t go to school with my kids anymore, but we pick up right where we left off when we see each other. I know, in the future, out calendars all won’t be dictated by our kids’ schedules…the day we don’t have to schedule carpool…wow! Hold me! It’s coming in the next year or so.

I’m ready for summer and hanging at the pool and just having a bit more downtime to see friends who we don’t get to see as often as we’d like to. Plans seem to fall into place a bit more naturally in the summer.

Also, I have to admit that since I am an introverted homebody, when I’m home, I want to stay at home. I also know that I need to get out a bit more sometimes, and I will do that too.

I don’t have a secret for maintaining friendships, but I’ve figured out quality over quantity, and that loyalty is the greatest attribute that I look for in a friend…well, that and sarcasm! We can’t take ourselves too seriously!