Good Friends

It is so hard to stay in touch with friends, especially friends from your younger days.  Mike has one special friend, Francine, that he has known since he was in middle school.  They have managed to stay in touch despite the years and distance (mostly thanks to Francine).  I remember meeting Francine when I was in college.  I went to Connecticut with Mike when our spring semester was over.  On my visit to Connecticut, we also drove to Boston to hang out with Francine.  I am not sure if we got to see one another again until mine and Mike's wedding in 1992.  Francine was there for that, and we made the trip to Connecticut in 1997 for Francine and David's wedding.  We met up again in 2001 in Boston when we were in the area for Mike's job.  At that point our families each had two kids about the same ages.  This made for a closer relationship with Francine as we commiserated on the ups and downs of being parents.  I always enjoyed Francine's company, but I am not sure how close we would have become if it had not been for the births of our third children.  Both of us ended up being moms to children with Down syndrome.  Not only that, but we both found out from prenatal testing.  Now, you get us together and we just can't stop talking, comparing the kids to one another, the husbands, etc.  It is sometimes scary how our families seem to be so similar.  At one point during Francine's visit with us this past weekend, out two oldest children said the same thing at the same time! I am very thankful that Francine stayed in touch with Mike over the years and that we have gotten a chance to become good friends.  Good friends are hard to come by.....good friends who know where you are coming from are rare.  Rare and cherished.