The best friends ever

A couple of years ago, It hit me that I have hit the jackpot with friends....big time.  I shared the (somewhat morbid) thought to my family in Auckland that if anything ever happened to Marty, I would NOT be moving back to Auckland!   Hawkes Bay had well and truly become my  home support network, and there is no way that I would ever want to leave the amazing people that have entered my life here.  

Marty has proven to be a wonderful source for friendship - I have developed wonderful relationships with all the wives of his groomsmen from our wedding!  

Anne-Marie and I get along so well and are so similar in some ways. Anne-Marie and Geremy have been such source of faith strength for us, when we were told we couldn't have children..they prayed. Our girls are in the same class at school, and their siblings will also be starting school together soon which is so cool. I laughed to Marty the other day as I noted that I now know I live in a small town because the second generation of friends are going to school together! I can't help but smile with contentment as I drop off our giggling friendly happy girls together to gymnastics, and remind Jaimee that Mrs Anne-Marie will bring her home (to which she doesn't even blink because she feels so comfortable with the family). Jaimee has been desperate to visit their church for a while now, so we joined them on Sunday at their service, followed by a chilled out 'chip sandwich' lunch together and a game of Yahtzee as our kids played happily. Bliss.

Another 'groomsman wife' that was introduced to me some 10 years ago is Vicki Lee. After living on the same street for a few years in Flaxmere and having countless lunches and coffee dates together with laughs, tears, sharing and encouraging each other...not to mention lots of babysitting swaps, we both made the move into Hastings within a year of each other! Now we have coffee together every Thursday afternoon, and this has become a highlight of my week. I am not quite sure how I am going to cope without her for 9 weeks as she is off to live in Fiji for a term....I expect lots of skype dates (probably on a Thursday afternoon!!!).

These guys are our adult equivalent of 'best friends', and we had no hesitation in making them Godparents for each of our children...we can't think of anyone more suitable to support us in the way we raise our children. We have so much fun together as couples - whether it is laughing until we are crying over a noisy game of cards or chatting until the wee hours of the morning on a night on the town! The girls adore Paige and Dylan, they are like cousins to them....on Tuesday evening we went over to their place for cake and cards, putting the kids to bed there. Dylan (11) lovingly gave Luke a bottle, while Paige read the girls a bedtime story. Awwww.....THIS is love. Check out how content my usually clingy son is with Mr Jeremy....he knows who he can trust.

Godfather (and one of our groomsmen) Jeremy gets BIG snuggles from Luke

Of course, there are more. We have the most amazingly loving church family, surrounding us with support, love and friendship. We are all busy, and don't get together nearly as much as I would like to - but I love that even if we only have a proper catch up once every few months, it still feels comfortable and honest. I feel loved and accepted for who I am, and I can only hope that these people feel the same way about me!

Friends for the kids AND us! Bex comes for tea and reads her adoring fans a bedtime story.

So thank you, my Hawkes Bay friends. I really appreciate you in our lives. Oh, and come over for coffee soon!

the girls are fast asleep at the Dempseys house while us adults play cards.!