A Girl and Her Best Friends

I just got back from a MUCH NEEDED weekend with these 2 beautiful ladies. The 3 of us have had so much hitting us at once in life and there is no better cure then just filling our days with laughter and goofiness. My friend on left is Katie and the one on the right is Rachelle. They are sisters and I'm the sister from another mister. If you saw all three of us together you would think we grew up together because of the way we tease each other and laugh with each other.

Rachelle gave brith to her daughter on May 16th, 2017. The day before my daughter was born. Rachelle had a still birth when her daughter was only 20 weeks old. When I got the news, my world felt shattered. I couldn't imagine what her world felt like. I comforted her the best way I knew how to which was crying with her, praying for her, and just sending her encouraging texts when I felt like I had the right words to say. After about a week or so I gave her space to process and journey through this grieving process. In that time I stayed in touch with her mom checking in on her because I cared so much about her and knew that she needed "a break" in our friendship. Its so hard to watch your friend go through infertility and loss when you can't relate to it at all. Its heart breaking and I have told her multiple times, I want to fix it all and sacrifice anything I can to make this a better journey for her. But, thats just life. Everyone has a different journey. I never gave up on our friendship and never once thought that this would be a wedge between us. I knew that when she was ready she would let me know and I would just overwhelm her with love, support and sympathy. It brings me to tears every time I think about what she has been through this last year. So when she was ready to talk again, I tried everything to figure out how I can be with her in person, pay for her ticket to CO or try to see if I can go out to CA. Just when I thought it wasn't going to be possible, God provided a way. Her mom reached out to me and told me she wanted to pay for my ticket for Annabelle and I to come out to see her. So, we did just that!

My heart was pounding and my palms were sweaty as I was waiting for her to pick me up at the airport. I had so many butterflies out of excitement to see her and just hold her. As soon as she got out of her car and started running towards me, I just started crying. I was so happy to see her again after everything that happened with Brynn, her daughter. We held each other tight for a good minute or 2 just soaking up the moment. Then, she got to meet Annabelle for the first time. I loved seeing the genuine smile on her face when she got to look her in the eyes and hold her and kiss her. Rachelle is so in love with her and it was so good to see her face light up in the midst of the pain. We got back to her house and I got to meet her ADORABLE dog and we just sat and talked for 3 hours while Annabelle napped just caught up with each other and processing life. It was uninterrupted and we had each others undivided attention. Later that night, Katie came over and we were all together again! The next day was just filled with laughter, weirdness, silliness, tears, talks, hugs, and joy.

My time with them was way to short but felt so fulfilling in many ways. I love seeing the endless support and comfort that Katie shows Rachelle. Being best friends with 2 sisters is not like any normal friendship. I have sisters and I know how strong our bond is. So, to watch them have that same bond makes my heart so happy.

I have learned a lot through this journey with Rachelle and have learned a lot about infertility and loss. My heart has grown so much love for the mamas with angel babies and the mamas with rainbow babies. I love the type of friendship we have to be able to get through this together despite our differences in our motherhood journeys. I am looking forward to the day I get to meet her baby for the first time and hold him/her in my arms.

I love you girls so much! Thank you for doing life with me and loving me the way you do!

You can watch how our weekend was on Rachelle's YouTube channel Rachelle & Justin