I was cleaning the bathrooms this morning and the house is just about silent. When it is silent, my brain usually is not. My brain is always thinking. So as im cleaning behind our filthy toilet (i thought the boys bathroom was discusting until i took a closer look at my own... yuck...) and thinking about military, marriages and familes. Ethan walks in after he is done cleaning off his sink, asking me for a snack for about the 6th time this morning. (uugh!) Mark just left. he came in to take shower after working out, and by the way, walked all over the clean floor with his boots on dispite me yelling back to him AND ethan that i was washing the floor and not to walk on it.
Anyways.... enough side tracking...
So im cleaning behind the toilet and thinking of the people i know, the friends ive met over the years, what made those friendships successful, when i felt my best and worse etc. I am big on believing that it does take a village to raise a child, family is important, and strength comes in numbers. This has been tested even more so since being Military and having kids and having to be so far from my family. I have kind of adopted friends as family, and even if i was not too close to my kids friends parents, my kids were able to have close friendships and i atleast knew the parent and we were friendly to eachother, look out for eachothers kids etc.
In florida, i had an amazing network of other military spouses and mothers. it was a perfect experience for me. south carolina i didnt really have much of that with the military folks. it was a small command and communication i felt was poor. but i did meet some amazing people through brodys school a few months before we had to leave. south carolina i would say was where the biggest toll was put on my family. we made the best of it though. we thought that would have been a good move for us, and in a way, it was, because it made our family stronger i believe. Here in CA, this move seems to be good for our entire family. I never would have thought this but so far i really love it here.
i like knowing that i have atleast 1-3 people i can depend on to joke with, vent to, or ask for a favor and i can be the same kind of friend for them. we need that. its a part of being human.
and Sometimes we have to weed out the people who seem to have a pattern of trouble. even if the person is not intentionally doing things to make things difficult, there comes a time when either there is going to be a change or its time to move on from the friendship, and there is nothing wrong with that. ready for a corny quote? "weeds stunt the growth of what could be a beautiful garden." its true though :)
and now i am going to enjoy this gloomy day with ethie Bee :)
