Our Friends Are Leaving!

My friend Lana is leaving. Boo-hoo! I am sad. Jessica is very sad. Her friend Melanie and her brother Austin are leaving, too. We went to Chuck E Cheese with them yesterday so the kids could play. They are moving to Nevada on Monday. Sold their house and bought one in a small town in Northern Nevada. About 11 hours drive from here! They had looked in Idaho (yes, she knows exactly where Sandpoint is) and some other places and they ended up in Nevada. Got some land and they are going to have chickens again. I used to get eggs from her before they sold their house in Palmdale. Rebekah wants to move to Duh-vad-a. And Jess does, too, when she turns eighteen.

I met Lana a few years ago when the kids were in gymnastics together. Neither of our kids go to the gymnastics center anymore, but we remained friends. And she has been my best Pampered Chef customer! She has had like four kitchen shows in three years! The last one on Friday last week.

I remember when my best friend moved away when I was four years old. She moved to Cincinnati. When we got old enough to write letters back and forth, we did. Covered them with stickers. I think I had to pay extra postage because of all the stickers on the pages! Now she is a television producer! And I visited her in New York when she worked at NBC before I got married. We stayed in contact through the years. Still do. I hope that Jessica and her friend Melanie stay friends.

Rebekah is sad that Austin is leaving. He gave her some cotton candy at Chuck E Cheese yesterday. You would have thought he gave her the best thing in the world. She gave him this look - smile, with lips pressed together, head tilted to one side, shoulder lifted up to rest her cheek on, eyes half closed. Trying to look sultry. Only succeeded in looking funny and cute. That's Rebekah! Then when we laughed at her, she kept doing it. Then she winked at him and I lost it! It was pretty cute.

I know Jessica will have more friends. She makes friends everywhere she goes. But Melanie has been her best friend and her first real friend. That she got together with and played with. That is special. They have had their differences, but for the most part they have gotten along great. And Jess has always told me if they disagree. Melanie is the one she wanted to call when she lost her first tooth! Thank goodness we have Vonage and calls to anywhere in the US are free. So they can still talk on the phone and send each other letters.

So we are losing some good friends, but maybe we can get up to northern Nevada and visit them sometime. Hopefully! Well, we are not really losing them, but we won't be able to get together like we have. What a bummer! But I wish them well in their new adventure.

Now Jessica wants to move because she thinks it is exciting to move.