The Cunninghams: Visitors!

We are having visitors this weekend! You have no idea how excited I am. My BFF of many many years is coming down from Michigan to spend the weekend with us! She comes on Thursday, and you have no idea just how perfectly this works. Nick works both jobs on Thursday and Friday, therefore I am left with only people under the age of three to talk to, other than my internet friends of course. I will have adult conversation for four days straight between Thess and Nick! Yay! And it is a weekend of pure fun and relaxation. Usually when we go to Michigan we have tons of plans and have to see a lot of people. This time Thess and Arianna (her three year old) are coming here and we just get to have fun with no plans set in stone. Nick would love it if TJ could come to, but since TJ has to stay home and work, Nick is going to be working all weekend as well.

Thess and I have been friends for almost our entire lives. We became friends in fourth grade when my parents moved us and I had to start at a new school. For whatever reasons that we don't even remember, we hated each other in 6th, 7th, and 8th grades. Thanks to being seated at the same table in Mr. Squier's 9th grade physical science, we were friends again and have been ever since. We attended the same church and youth group and then the same college.

We've been the maid/matron of honor in each others weddings. We had our baby girls 7 weeks apart, so we are now moms together. We have so much fun when we get together and get the kids together. We love to dress the girls up in matching clothes. It's so fun for us. Often times when we see a good sale on something that is especially cute, we buy two of them. They have matching dresses to wear to church Sunday, matching shirts for another day, and I may run out and get them some matching pj's for fun!

I believe that there are some people that are brought into our lives for just a season. We may be fast friends, but then grow apart at some point. Those people are meant to be in our lives for a short time. But I believe there are other people God brings into our lives that are meant to be there for the long haul. They are the ones who will be with you through thick and thin, will be your shoulder to cry on when you need it, to laugh with you when you do something really silly, to vent to, to share your secrets that you wouldn't share with anyone else (except your spouse since I'm a firm believer in no secrets between spouses), to help each other through life-all the good times and the bad. Thess is one of those people. Our friendship has stood the test of time. We can give each other a kick in the butt when we need it, but we are also supportive and lend a listening ear when needed. We seem to be able to read each other and know when the other just needs someone to listen to them, or when they might need that firm kick. Thess is like my sister.

Now for some pictures for fun. I'll post pictures of our girls first since that is just how blogger put htem and it's such a pain to have to switch them around!

Kylee and Arianna when they first met. Arianna was 3 months old and Kylee was 6 weeks

Their first "twin" outfits. Arianna was about 11 months and Kylee was about 9 months old.

Arianna, Emma-Leigh (our friend Stephanie's little girl) and Kylee after a day at the Shedd Aquarium in November 2007.

Arianna and Kylee in their matching jammies in May 2008

Matching shirts-May 2008

Matching dresses May 2008

On a car ride! September 2008

Now for some good ole pictures of me and Thess!

Probably our junior year of high school (I only know that by the room I'm in and the bed I have-my parents switched the beds and gave the bunks to my sisters right before my senior year)

Our junior year. Now can you see why we like to dress our girls alike? We had so many similar clothes, in high school we were often dressed alike and only planned it during spirit week when we had Twin Day.

One of the years we counseled middler camp. One of the other counselors took pictures to enter a fair and the theme was best friends. She mailed this to me after the fair was over.

Senior year in track

Freshman year at Olivet. Thess was a cheerleader and I am in one of the ugliest pep band shirts I have ever laid my eyes on. Olivet should burn any of those shirts if they have any left over!