I scheduled this post to go live at noon because about an hour ago my best friend and I showed up on an island 600+ miles from home to surprise our other best friend. I highly doubt she’d have read my blog this morning, but we’ve been working on making this happen for a few months now and I didn’t want to be the one to blow it. Shout out to Kayla for making the long-ass through-the-night drive with me & to Megan for essentially putting this whole thing into motion.
A big theme in blog world is finding your people or finding your tribe or keeping close to framily or… You know what I mean. We call them different things, but they’re the people that (usually) aren’t related by blood that we’d do absolutely anything for.
I had lots of friends in school and I hopped around a lot. In elementary school I considered a girl named Lindsey to be my bff (but I had many, many close friends). In middle school I fell in with a girl named Ali. In high school my best friend’s name was Sam & in college it was Sarah. I still talk to those woman, sometimes often (except one- which hopefully maybe will change as we get older?), but we’re not best friends and we’ve all gone our separate ways and we’re doing really well.
It makes me sad that young Audrey let those relationships crumble, but I also know that some people are in our lives forever and some aren’t, and there are different levels of involvement those people have throughout our lives.
That makes me all the more grateful when I think about my people right now. We show up for each other’s birthdays. When we get a few free minutes we hop on the phone and try to catch up between meal prep or kids’ doctor appointments or client visits. Anything noteworthy is immediately shared in the group text where successes are celebrated and disappointments are lamented. We’re spread out and busy, but we make the time because we love one another.
Also, I LOVE blogging because I’ve met so many amazing, supportive, genius, beautiful, strong women here! (And you guys showering me with birthday wishes last week made my heart burst.) So I fully believe tribes can be found off and online, as well as with people you haven’t met face-to-face.
What I’m getting at here is: Find your people. Find your tribe. Grow your family to framily. Invest in the bank of friendship and don’t be afraid to ask for that love and support back- it’s why they’re there. And if things change that’s ok. People change and circumstances change. You know the people you know for a reason- even if it’s not forever.
So send a text to your friend or give them a call. Hell, write them a letter! (I love getting letters.) Remember to show up & make the time & give the energy. Be there when they need you most and accept them into your space when things aren’t going well. It really is what friends are for ❤
Life as Louise 
Oh my gosh – I love you took the time to stop & invest in your friendships. I hope you have the best time with laughing & loving on each other!!!
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Thanks so much, Rebecca Jo!! It was a really fun few days away! Lots of exploring & relaxing!
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Love this, Audrey and it’s so true. Most of my friends from school are no longer in my life. I grew up before social media so it wasn’t uncommon for people to lose touch after graduation. It makes me sad but I also treasure those memories, knowing that today are lives are so different that we likely wouldn’t be so close but we’ll always have high school, middle school etc. And I believe the people we chose as our family/tribe/community are some of the most important, influential people in our lives because we did CHOOSE them to be a part of it, whether they are in it for just a short time or forever. There is nothing more precious than having someone to lean on in good and bad times.
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Thanks, Tanya. I have mixed feelings about the group I hung out with in hs. I have good memories, but I have some terrible ones, too. I don’t regret those friendships fading away- because it was definitely time- but as an adult I can pick out the true people and strong times I once had! And the girls that I consider my best friends now have been a part of my life for YEARS- just not in the best friend category like they are now!!
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I hope that you have the best time with your girlfriends this week! I truly believe that sometimes we only have friends for a season, which is sad, but that’s what makes our long friendships so much more special!
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Thank you so much, Ashley!! I totally agree about right-now-friends and forever-friends!
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when life gets busy – and it gets busier as we get older – it’s so important to make the effort to see them; even if it’s once a month.
my bestie and i have been friends for over 30yrs (omg we’re so old) and my group of girls and i have been friends for nearly that long (since grade 9 or 10). we get together every christmas, for every birthday and whenever one of is us having some kind of event, we support that person. group chats help us connect throughout the week. it’s small things like that that help you stay close/connected.
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I agree completely.
I consider three women my best friends. I met them in 2001, 2002, and 2007. They haven’t always been my bffs, but they were at least my friends. And I feel like that makes our now-friendship even stronger! I love that you take the time to get together without your girls! Group chats are the BEST.
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This is so beautiful. I loved Following the action on Instagram and what a special surprise! Have the best weekend. Xo!
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Thanks, Emelia 🙂 I’m so shocked that we pulled it off! I’m posting a video on Thursday that shows her reaction to seeing us for the first time!
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Love this. I hope you have the best time with your friends!!!!
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Thank you so much, Nadine!
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This is such a sweet post, and what a fun way to surprise a friend!
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I’m so shocked that we pulled off the surprise 🙂
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I love, love, love this! Finding your tribe is SO important!!
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It really is. Being an adult can be so lonely. Friends are the perfect remedy ❤
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I love this so much, and I hope you had fun with your friends! I do believe that people are in your life for a reason. I’ve lost friends, and it was heartbreaking, but I cherish the ones that stuck around…as well as the new friends I’ve made over the years (online AND off).
-Lauren
http://www.shootingstarsmag.net
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It’s so emotional to look back on friendships lost and reflect on those who have stuck around. It’s definitely something to be grateful for 🙂 I’m glad we could be there for my friend this weekend!!
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Lovely post! Hope you had a wonderful time surprising your friend.
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Thank you!! It was a lot of fun!
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I love this so much and know that meant the world to her!!
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She was so shocked. I’m so glad we pulled it off!! It was the perfect little escape!
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Aww, I hope you’ve had an amazing trip and time with your friends–you’re an amazing friend! And I totally agree: we have to show up and be a friend to our friends 🙂
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Thanks, Julie! It was such a fun time 🙂 Island life suits me very well. Dolphins every morning and dog sightings in the afternoon 🙂
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Friends like you are such a treasure! Friendships are hard, but the ones that you put a lot into are so rewarding. It’s amazing how some friends last a lifetime and some just a season or two.
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Thanks, Kristen! Finding and keeping friends as an adult is weird and challenging. I’m grateful that I have some good ones that followed me out of my childhood and strange, bitchy teen years. Thank goodness they stuck it out! Lol!
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