Thoughtful gestures and amazing friends

This would have made a perfect Thanksgiving post.  I wasn't thinking I guess.  But I am glad I waited because it just just keeps getting better.

Since we made the big announcement about our expanding family, so many of my friends have reached out to me with such generous offers, gifts and hand-me-downs.  This blog is in now way a replacement for the Thank You note, but more of a list of "I can't believe how wonderful people are."

A close family friend, Rebecca, not only sent me a box FULL of baby boy clothes in all sizes that her son wore, but she sent me a second box FULL of maternity clothes.  Which is incredible.  I haven't seen Rebecca since she was married in 2001 or maybe 2002!  For most of our childhood, Rebecca's older sister, Nicole sent me her hand-me-down clothes.  Then we would send my clothes to Rebecca.  And now we have come full circle.  Rebecca's clothes have saved me on several levels...not just financially, but also in peace of mind (it's cute stuff!!).

And then there is Christie.  We were friends in middle-school and early high school, but she moved away in 10th grade.  I hadn't seen her in years, but shortly after Chris and I moved to Colorado in 2006, Christie found me on our class reunion website and realized that we both lived in the Denver area but on opposite sides of the city.  Last year, when Chris and I bought our home, Christie and I reconnected (again) and realized that we only live about 2 miles from each other.  And she too shared a bag FULL of maternity clothes with me.  Many of the pants are too short, but the tops and skirts fit perfectly.

And one of my best friends, Tanya, was the first one to send Baby Boy Rowland a gift...Tanya sent the cutest little outfit from a European company that has a fabulous monkey face on it.  It's blue and white striped and deserves a picture, but I want to wait until the munchkin is inside of it!

Lisa (my sole mate - aka running buddy) gave me great advice on which pregnancy books to read and which to avoid, what I should expect from my doctor, and has been a great sounding board for all things pregnancy related (and the crazy emotions and feelings that come with it all).  I can't wait for our first long run with jogging strollers!  Or maybe just another beer and half-marathon contract!  

There have been many congratulatory emails and phone calls and text messages.  And friends who are willing to drive for HOURS to get to a baby shower.  The love from all these women just overwhelms me. 

Today we received a pretty precious gift.  Our friend Jessica from Austin is a teacher, a student, an at-home culinary expert, a socialite, an aunt, and so many other things.  She took time from her ever-busy schedule to knit our son the most perfect, tiny, green hat.  She knitted it herself.  I couldn't even dream of doing that.

I guess all the pregnancy hormones have me a little more emotional than usual and are causing me to reflect more on all this cool stuff.

I moved away from my family in 2004 and landed in Dallas, Texas where I knew only one person well enough to consider a friend.  Finding a sense of family in other places is not always easy to do. And over the past several years, I have been blessed with so many close friends, some geographically close to me, and others two time zones away.  Some I have known since before I could drive, and others I've only known a few years.  But regardless of time or distance, it's a time like this when I realize how fortunate I am to have such an amazing network of girlfriends who, no matter time between conversations and distance between homes will always be a part of my family.