ntlt friday friends

meet stephanie.

sometimes it’s hard to pinpoint the exact moment you became friends with someone. or the exact moment you knew you would be friends. i’ve been sitting here, trying to do just that, in regards to my friend stephanie.

i think what makes it so hard is i can’t imagine a time when we weren’t friends. what i do know is that it was my second year teaching in florida. i had gotten over the newness of most things – the city, the job, the people, the being on my own. but i hadn’t really established that core group of friends i missed so much from home.

the beginning of the school year was marked by an onslaught of meetings. i remember walking into the first one with another friend and noticing a few new teachers, stephanie included. we talked briefly and i learned she was overly friendly and she was planning her wedding. having just gotten married, this was something we had in common.

how our friendship developed from there is a bit of a mystery. which is funny because now, i can’t imagine a day without shared phone calls and texts, talking about everything and sometimes nothing. i remember occasional coffee stops before school, wedding talk, saying hi in passing between classes, and sitting together at meetings. at first, we were work friends. and then we were all the time friends.

our oldest children are two weeks apart. i remember when she told me she was pregnant. i knew i was pregnant too but still needed to wait the obligatory two more weeks to tell her. it was so much fun to go through our first pregnancy journey together. and then all the new mom craziness too. we were tired, had no idea what we were doing, nervous about everything, and most likely unshowered. but we were together and i think that’s what solidified the friendship. there is nothing like sharing life moments like these with someone else to make you feel a little bit more normal.

these days, most of our friendship happens over the phone. she is in florida and i am in indy. i haven’t seen her in about a year but it never feels that way. stephanie is just that kind of friend. the kind of friend who is just easy to have because it just works and you just get each other. like last night. we talked until almost midnight, about everything and nothing.

stephanie is funny. she is brutally honest. she wears her heart on her sleeve. she is the most generous friend. she is thoughtful, caring, beautiful, remembers important things, is an incredible, dedicated mom, and gives great advice. i am so blessed to know her and she’s sharing her LITTLE things today for

welcome stephanie! thank you for noticing and sharing.

here is stephanies’s list for 10.14.16

1. fall weather {even if only for a little bit}.

2. finding a gift card i forgot about.

3. trying pilates and enjoying it.

4. singing during dinner, even when i know it’s awful.

5. starbucks twice in one week.

6. HG’s curls after a braid. so gorgeous.

7. HW pulling up for the first time and HF being potty trained.

8. knowing all the words at a concert {garth brooks!}.

9. a new bachelor spin off show.

10. wearing a sweater and not sweating.

inspired to write a LITTLE list of your own? you can also share for friday friends! whether you’re a new follower or old friend, subscribe to the blog below and comment to let me know you’re interested. can’t wait to share your list!