What are friends for, hmmmm?

Pictures of friends can be so much fun. These cards of my four friends from Holy Redeemer School days, were inspired by collages made by Tammie Moore, which I saw on her December 5, 2007 blog (Tammie is currently teaching at Zinnia's in South Pasadena and is such a creative soul).

Carole (born on Christmas Day)

In 1976, Carole and I lived less than a block from each other in Glendale and didn't know it. In retrospect, it was so sad since Erik, my 1st born dob is 7-7-76, and Carole's 1st born, Melinda, dob is 7-14-76, and neither of our babies would sleep through the night. We could have been a big comfort to each other.

We met officially when our kids started kindergarten and there was a welcome event at Julie's home. She was our 1st room mother at Holy Redeemer School

We became even closer when both our mothers were sick and were at Glendale Memorial Hospital. Carole's mom died first and my mom died about six months later. Thank God our children got to know their beloved grandmas, even if only for a short time.

Carole and I have grown so close now that we believe we were twins separated at birth.

Each card that I made for my friends has a piece of my mom's jewelry on it. It was important to me to share a part of my mom with each one of them, since I feel that any goodness I possess came from the efforts of Nadine. Plus, my mom was naturally artistic. Her outlet for her creativity could be seen in the cloths she made for evening like cocktail dresses. She could afford to purchase what ever she wanted but loved the hands on of creating.

Patty

Patty, Patty, Patty, with the insane sense of humor and a hilarious laugh to with it and always at your expense :)

We met when our second born, both girls, became the best of friends in kindergarten. While waiting for the girls to get out of school we would talk and talk. She held my hand and listened to all the events leading up to and following my location of my natural mom, Irene, my full sister, Lana and Lana's four girls.

Patty's favorite place to go on vacation with us was the Panamount Mts. She loves hot - NOT!

Her family including Mary, her mom, spent one Christmas Day with us. It was the best Christmas ever. she brought her cream corn. Yummy.

Our girls lived at each other's home. Do we have memories, oh my. But don't listen to her or believe a word she says. You know they're all lies. :)

Upstairs along the width of our home was a long narrow room that had the ironing board and my mom's Singer Sewing machine always at the ready. For my senior prom (I had to be home by midnight) she made me the most beautiful lined satin coat with a huge collar. It was so beautiful and she used one of her pins to decorate the clasp.

Julie

Julie and I became the best of friends because our sons were the best of friends. John and Erik started kindergarten together and ended up doing everything together with the Tres Amigo, Dane. All three were so different but best of friends.

Julie discovered working in Holy Redeemer's library, that there were six Apple IIe's just sitting there with no one to know what to do with them. Along comes fearless me who had never seen a computer in my life and we started exploring.

Now Julie is a nurse and a detailed cautious person. I'm this tin man, who doesn't have a brain, plus the fearless lion combined. I'm macro - she's micro. Together we started taking apart the computers and looking at the programs on all the free floopies. We didn't know programming but managed to make education disk for kindergarten through 8th grade. And then we trained the mothers to run the programs we set up. On of my proudest achievements. We could not have done it alone. Together we made a complete brain!

Alice

Alice lived just down the street from Carole and about a block and a half from me. She had two older boys. Her youngest was Susie who was in that now infamous kindergarten class along with Carole's - Melinda, Patty's - Tara, Julie's - John and my - Erik. All theses mom's were also trained by Juolie and I to run the computer program that we set up. Three of them are BSRN's (Julie, Carole & Alice) No dim bulbs in our group!

Alice also joined our little Mah Jong group where we ate, laughted and shared famly stories once a month. And stories. . . the end of each school year we would all take our kids the last day of school to the beach. Theses trips went to Zuma, Huntington Beach and "Oh, there's Studabacker Rd, Alice, turn there." What is life but for risk! Our lives continue to be intertwiend, "Till death do us part."

I made a mistake on Alice's cheeks, so I tried to hide it with the hearts and glitter. Bad idea. I'm still learning. . .

Georgia

Georgia is my first San Diego "friend for life." We met when she was teaching a class I had signed up for. The genealogy dolls I made in that class will show up in a future blog, I'm sure. They are my most favorite things I've ever made and mean so much to me.

Well, Georgia is one crazy lady (and, by the way, also an RN). At sixty she got a tatoo on her breast which she will gladly show you should you inquire. She's been know to flash those breast on the road between San Diego and Phoenisx caravaning with Dawn, Kathie and Hillari on the way to Art Unraveled in her RAV4 with me driving. she has taught me everything I know abou tart. Her specialty is water colors.

How great for the two of us when my son, Erik and his wife Shannon, purchased their first home about 1 mile from Georgia's in Oceanside. We try to have a play date at least once a month at one of our homes.

Next is a picture from a magazine of two gals having a ball sitting next to each other on a fence at the beach and laughing. Georgia and I were going to Art Unraveled in Phoenix that year and I had a folder that contained all my class descriptions and times and supplies needed. That year, AU 2006, I took classes from Gail Russakov, Lynne Perrella, Traci Bunker and the one and only Anne Grgich!

I decided to decorated the cover of this folder for our trip. In Photo Shop, I replace the heads that were there with Georgia and my heads. Then, there is the humble attempt at collaging. Again, still learning but having fun in the process. Needless to say, we had a blast.

Georgia and Sally

Last but not least, I just love Lesley Riley's books and her art. It's fun to find a little sewing project. So for two of my oldest friends come the next two birthday card.

Mary

I met Mary when my parents got married and I had to change Catholic schools in Glendale. I went from Holy Family to Incarnation School for my 4th grade. I was terrified. I didn't know anyone and I was kind of an odd kid.

Mary and I were kind of an odd couple. She was tall and slender and I was and still am, short and squatty. We looked like Mutt and Jeff. We became fast friends mostly because of sports. She and I used to play "burn out" with the soft ball and gloves during lunch hour while the rest of the girls ogled the boys and sat around and talked.

Her mom and my mom became the class Campfire Girl Leaders. Mary's mom and dad have many funny stories about me and they think I have a very distinctive walk and laugh.

One story is especially funny to Mary's mom. You know how I LOVE food. Well, I guess I always have. Our Campfire group was away at an over night and we had made our package meal in aluminum wrap and cooked it in the coals from our campfire. On the way to the table to eat it I dropped mine in the dirt and it broke open. I was so hungry that Mary's mom remembers me sitting down and eating as much as I could that hadn't hit the dirt.

Mary's photo is about vintage 1958. She is standing against the garage that housed the outhouse on my parents 160 acres. My dad and his dad had Homesteaded this property that was one mile off the hoop de doo road that goes from Pearl Blossom to Victorville. Doesn't she look sexy?!

Mary

Suzanne

Suzanne and I met when our sons were in pre-school at St. George's in La Canada. Our boys were three years old and our daughters were one year old . Our husband even became great friends to the extent that Michael and I bought the same exact motor home as Suzanne and Henry with bunk beds in the back for our kids.

We went on many a vacation and rode motor cycles out in the desert together. Suzanne and I would take the motor homes and our kids to the beach and then our husbands would take the train to where we were or else drive one car up on the weekends and then the men would drive the motor homes back and Suzanne and I would go home without the kids in the car.

Suzanne and I were another odd couple. Nothing at all alike. She is very tall and thin to this day and I, again, am short and perhaps a little on the fat or chubby side at this time. Because of the respect we have for each other including our differences we are still "best buds" to this day. I have yet to get over the fact that they moved to Lafayette by San Francisco when our son's were going into 6th or 7th grade. We just came back from the marriage of her son, Jake and Kacie at the Presidio by the bay.

Suzanne and Sally "hanging out"

Obviously that photo has done double duty for many of my friends. I think it's time I found a new magazine picture to play around, don't you? Plus, I have new friends down here in San Diego. I have to do something artful for them. And then there's Jeannie who brought me 60 individually wrapped presents to my 60th birthday party. Each present had a significance to where we have been together. Just give me time.