"I Love..." Mondays: Friends

     It's still Monday.  I could swear I'm sitting here on Tuesday night but it just isn't true.  Today was Joshua's first FULL day at Autism House and he did great.  The kid is just a natural school-goer.  Apparently the routine of it all sits very well with him because he has even been in a better mood once he's home.  The first thing they have been working with him on is sitting at the table and doing his 'work'.  He started off only sitting for seven minutes at a time and now they already have him worked up to thirty.  He isn't a huge fan of the arts and crafts but he's gotten better and more compliant with that too.  I am just thrilled and so excited he's adjusting so well. It is absolutely answered prayer.

     Monday is becoming a real Monday to me now that I have to get up and get Joshua to school.  It's turned back into that day I dread because it means I have to set an alarm clock.  But it is also now a day that has one specific task connected to it and that's an "I Love..." post.  Today I asked myself what do I really, really love?  If there's one thing you should know about me, it's that I love my friends.  Well, I mean after knowing that I love my husband and my babies but I'm pretty sure y'all know that by now.  So, friends it is.  Here are some things I love about my friends.

• Laughing.  I LOVE to laugh and could probably write a post about that too but no one makes me laugh like my girls so it's hard to separate the two.  I think I am friends with some of the funniest people ever and each of them have their own specific brand of hilarity.  If you can make me laugh, you've got me.
• Inside jokes.  Yes, I know it goes along with laughing and yes, I know they can be very annoying when you aren't 'in' on them...BUT.  There's something to be said for laughing so hard about something that you continue to laugh about it for months or years to come, even when it's a little out of context or no one else around you has any clue what is so funny.  
• Memories.  Which is really all inside jokes are.  It's a connector, reminding you that you've shared your life with someone else.  The good parts and bad parts.  
• Girl talk.  I grew up being more of a tomboy, which is a trait I've somewhat retained, but I've always loved some good girl talk.  IF I knew I could trust all involved to not let it leave that room.  You've got something good if you have someone you can talk to about anything, everything, and nothing.  
• Food.  To go along with the girl talk.
• Reliability.  It's so important in a good, long-lasting friendship, but a little hard to come by.  People you know you can call if you need something, no matter what.
• Getting to be real.  My favorite part in a friendship is when you pass the super polite/nice stage and start picking on each other.  If I can make fun of you without offending you, then we're friends.  If I can tell you the pair of shoes you just picked up in the store are hideous, then we're friends.  If I feel comfortable enough at your house to rummage through the fridge and pantry, then we're friends.
• Nicknames.  I'm realizing that most of my friends right now have one.  And the ones that don't are probably about to get one.  
• Honesty.  "Am I being a jerk?"  "Yes, you are." 
• Secrets.  And not the "mean kind", Joy says.  I love having people who know me.  The past, the present, the deep stuff, and the...not so deep stuff that's just fun to giggle about.
• The distance-doesn't-matter friends.  When you can keep in touch on the internet and phone or even maybe not talk for months and then pick up right where you left off, you've got something special.
• No-reciprocation-needed Favors.  I can buy your lunch and you don't have to pay me back.  You babysit my kids and I don't have to pay you.  Doing things for each other just because you care about each other and that's what family does.  Because really...
• They're like family.  A hand-picked, dysfunctional, unconditional-loving, loud, hungry, hilarious family.