BlogHer

Make new Friends but keep the old

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friend·shipˈfren(d)SHip/noun as defined by Google
 
  1. the emotions or conduct of friends; the state of being friends.
    synonyms: relationship, close relationship, attachment, mutual attachment,association, bond, tie, link, union;

    informalbromance
    “lasting friendships”
    • a relationship between friends.
      plural noun: friendships
      “she formed close friendships with women”

“Make new friends but keep the old, one is silver and the other gold, a circle’s round and has no end, that’s how long I want to be your friend!” These are the words from a Girl Scout Campfire Song that my girls and I know well as we sing it at camp in the summer and one we sing at the closing of the meeting for each of their troops.

It is also a song that became our mantra for our move a little over a year ago for our family. We were leaving friends that each girl had made in preschool and elementary school and the same was true for my husband and me.  We had lived in our home for nine years so we had made friends with our neighbors and the parents of our girls’ school friends.

We reminded ourselves that we would still see our “old” friends since we were only moving 25 miles away and that we would make new friends where we were moving.  I instilled this mantra in our lives hoping it was true.  I have recently posted about the neighborhood we find ourselves living in now in my post We live in Pleasantville where we have made new friends both for our girls as noted and for ourselves.

I sit here thinking about friendships and think about the valuable friendships I have made through the networks of blogging and social media. Opportunity has presented itself where I’ve met some of my virtual friends in person and I have reconnected with elementary, high school and other friends through social media.  All of these friendships bring great value to my life and I really appreciate the efforts we all make to stay in touch if only online.

I’d like to introduce you to a few of my blogging friends who I had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know and become friends with when I attended #BlogHer over the summer.  They like me have written about Friendship:

Phyllis of Napkin Hoarder who wrote Making Friends #NaBloPoMo 17

Cheryl of Busy Since Birth who wrote First Friend #NaBloPoMo 17

Kimberly of Red Shutters Blog who wrote Musings on Friendship

Danielle of Another Version of Mother who wrote my Phone People

Melissa at A Wide Line who wrote Friendship Squares

This is my 17th contribution to National Blog Posting Month, click #NaBloPoMo to read the many other bloggers contributing for this event, Enjoy!

Game of boards …

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Any visitor to our home beware you will be asked to play games lots of games, board games, card games, dice games and much much more when you enter!

board games

Our girls love to play games and if you are visiting they will rope you into one of the many games they like to play.  It might be as soon as you arrive, before dinner, after dinner, first thing in the morning, well anytime!  It is great to see them enjoy the visits with family and friends and enjoy their time shared playing any one of their favorites.

You can be visiting for a few hours or a few days and you will be taking part in the marathon of game playing.  You will hear laughter and shouts during the heat of a game.  It is during these times I see the building of relationships our girls are making with their family and friends. The sharing and following of rules guiding them through the time together. Games in our house are played at a very competitive level 😉

I can remember back when our oldest was a pre-schooler and would alter the rules to fit her needs so she could win.  She does now at 8 years old play within the rules, but if she could get away with a blurred line she will!

So if you dare to enter be at the ready for the Game of Boards!

This is day 16 of my posts for National Blog Posting Month, click #NaBloPoMo to enjoy the many other bloggers participating!

We live in Pleasantville

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Does this blog post title give you a vision in your head?  It does me, I see 1950s style neighborhoods in suburbia in black and white.  Neat rows of houses and kids playing outside together.

There are days as I sit inside our house I hear the kids in our neighborhood outside and playing together.  It’s such a great sound and one I enjoy knowing my girls are out there too!

I think of our neighborhood as Pleasantville like a throwback to the 50s and 60s when you did play outside in your neighborhood with your neighborhood friends!

When we first moved to our home we had no idea what our neighborhood was like other than we knew the schools would be good and we liked the look of the older ranch style homes and all the trees!

Within the first day of living in our home we found that we were one of many families with kids our kids ages.   A mix of girls and boys (mostly girls) who were around the same ages and most of them were going to the school our girls would be enrolled in.

Today I sat here,  and I listened to our girls surrounded by friends jumping, yelling and laughing in the piles of leaves they all helped rake together. First the two sisters from across the way came by to have fun and then after hearing all the fun and laughter another two sisters from a few houses down came over.  Yep that’s right it was not a planned play date, it just happened!

girl fun in the leaves 11-15-14

This is like a throwback to the neighborhood I grew up in the 60s where you always played in the neighborhood with your friends and always outside as the weather permitted.  When all is said and done all the organized after school activities are just that, the spontaneity of playing with friends where you live that is childhood!  I am so happy we moved to a place where our girls will get to have this fun neighborhood experience!

And that is how we are spending our Saturday afternoon!

This is day 15 for National Blog Posting Month, to read many of the other bloggers click #NaBloPoMo and Enjoy!

My most favorite time of the year

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au·tumn ˈôdəm/noun

the third season of the year, when crops and fruits are gathered and leaves fall, in the northern hemisphere from September to November and in the southern hemisphere from March to May.

“the countryside is ablaze with color in autumn”

fall out front 2014

This is what we see right now as we exit our home and it doesn’t even show all the color of the trees that surround us!  When we moved a little over a year ago we moved from a newer development with few trees and fewer trees that changed color in autumn.  Now we are in a neighborhood in a town that is known as the city of trees and our neighborhood is bursting with the colors of fall!

In our brief ride to school today both of my girls were excitedly calling out all the colors they could see that surround us.  They each shared how much they like to see these color changes.  What’s more they are excited to rake and jump into piles of leaves!  Something they experienced for the first time last year!

girls raking 11-9-13

This conversation with my girls and my own thoughts of the season were so connected!  This is my favorite time of year, I have memories of Fall growing up on the East Coast.  My commute from Long Island to New York City on the train elevated at times cruising over tree tops in beautiful colors of red, orange yellow and more this time of year.

The air gets crisp and has a certain smell that I recognize as fall.  We get to wear coats and sweaters, and closed toe shoes like boots!  I cook differently in the fall, the house is not already hot from the summer heat so I can roast, bake and more.  This then adds to the sense of smell for this time of year with pumpkin bread, chicken roasting, and cookies and treats!

Let’s be honest this is also my favorite time of year as my birthday is in the fall, Thanksgiving and Christmas.  All family driven holidays which make them all that much more for me and my family!  I love having family and friends together to eat and spend time together at the holidays (but that’s another post for another day). As I mentioned in my coffee date? post , I enjoy the flavors of the season in my coffee!

The conversation today with my girls was the best way to start our friday, and am looking forward to our weekend ahead with raking and jumping into piles of leaves!

This my my 14th post for National Blog Posting Month, please click #NaBloPoMo to read the many other bloggers’ stories as part of this event, Enjoy!