Friends!

Ohhhh it has been such a friendful week!  I drove from WV to my parents house, which wasn't too bad of a drive.  I just pop an audible book on my phone and away I go!

I'd like to put in an advertisement for www.audible.com.
I'm crazy for audio books. My dad read to me nightly as a kid. I grew up listening to his deep voice read The Hobbit, Watership Down: A Novel, James and the Giant Peach (and ever other Roald Dahl book), Gulliver's Travels (I was so little I had to ask what half the words meant) and too many other books to name. I remember reading him Journey to the Center of the Earth (Qualitas Classics) as he fixed his car. Books were a huge part of my life as a kid.  I could always find comfort losing myself in a book. In our house we didn't have to be cajoled into reading a book, but rather putting it down long enough to have a conversation.
I tell people my brother taught me how to read.  If he didn't (I now don't remember) he certainly set an amazing example of reading, as he was reading at a college level in...4th grade. Yes, smart kid and a great reader.  I remember how much he loved Steven King, long before any kid his age should have been able to understand them.  I now love audibles because I can put them on my phone, pop in some headphones and walk around my house cooking, cleaning, organizing and other stuff while still listening to a book.  They are addictive!

Today my mom and I drove from Ohio where they currently live, back to Indiana where we lived for close to 10 years.  First I dropped in on my friend Megan whom I went to school with for mannnny years.  We used to pass notes in 7th grade History class.  She now has an adorable two month old daughter and two very rambunctious dogs. I got a tour of her house, and got to sit and chat for awhile.

Next I got to see the other Eileen. No seriously, we are the Eileen's when we are together.  She has two of the cutest and sweetest little girls.  Her older daughter, now 4 (blows my mind) just crawled up in my lap like we were old friends and played a game with me.  It was so much fun!

How the Eileen's met is a funny story in itself.  See, there aren't too many Eileen's in our generation so when we came across another of our name we'd stop and discuss.  We were both at a Halloween party and when people heard my name, they would tell me there was another Eileen there. Eventually we met and the conversation went something like this, "Hi, my name is Eileen!"
"Oh my God, your name is Eileen too? That's my name!"
"Oh sweet, what's your middle name? Mine is Katherine."
"Gabrielle!"
"Pretty...wanna be friends?"
"Sure!"
Weren't things simple when you were a teenager?  So basically, we've been friends since.

It's weird to see people again after years when you keep in touch on facebook. For example, I hadn't seen Megan for years (since high school graduation) but seeing her again after keeping up with her life on facebook made it seem like we hadn't been apart for more than a couple of weeks.
Same with Eileen. I keep up with her life and children on facebook, and all the text pictures she sends me of her minions, so it really doesn't feel like we are apart.  I feel like I lost track of years of family member's lives before we had things like skype and cheap long distance phone calls.  I love that we can keep in contact with friends in Germany, or I can show my friend from WV my house over skype.  I love technology (when it works!)

Next...dinner with the family! I took my mom, brother and his girlfriend out for dinner to this little diner where we enjoyed a nice quiet dinner. Hahahahhaaha sorry I can't stop laughing at the thought of us behaving.  The three of us (mom, bro and me) are pretty loud and silly on our own, but add in the girlfriend and things were hilarious, kind of loud, full of joking swearing and other obscenities. I didn't get hit, and only threw a creamer at him once.  The four of us just snipe back in forth, in love.  I'm putting some pictures below. Shhh, don't tell Shawn since I pinky promised him I wouldn't put them on facebook. Wait, I didn't promise I wouldn't put them on my blog.  I'm feeling a little evil...

Tomorrow I'm off to visit more friends.  The awesomeness continues.

Brother not loving the loving lol

No seriously, the only way I got a picture was to make him laugh.

smirk...yes, his glasses are crooked.

My brother got a mustache out of a 75 cent vending thing, and my mom claimed it.  She didn't want me to put her picture up until I told her she was in a disguise so no one would recognize her...mwahahahaha...