Life is a journey.

We all have many ups and downs, celebrations and sadness. People come into, out of and possibly back into our lives through the years, but it's the ones that stick by us through all of it that are truly memorable. I was given the Pandora charm (above) from one of my best friends Kristen for my birthday and by glancing at it you might think that it is a beautiful charm. It truly is and it is called "journey". It is so fitting to have been given this charm from Kristen because we have certainly been through an amazing journey in the past four years together. Here is a little background on our whirlwind friendship and why I can most certainly say that we will be friends forever and quite possibly end up in an old folks home together someday kicking back, drinking wine, playing BUNCO and enjoying life to the fullest!

The Charlton Family had a close encounter with The Castana Family while hunting for Christmas trees in 2006. We met on a cold and snowy day at Hemlock Haven. They were brave enough to take Jake out in the snow and cut down their tree while we chickened out and Roland stayed back at the shop with Seth while my mom and I searched for a Christmas tree in the snow. I remember thinking to myself, "They look like such a wonderful family."

The second time we ran into them was at St. Anthony's after mass. We said some brief hellos and that was about it. The final time we ran into them was at story time at the library in late August of 2007 right before Lee deployed last time. That was it, we started getting together for play dates with the boys and were instant friends; like we had known each other for years.

Four years later, vacations taken together, endless play dates, birthday's celebrated together, weekly dinner dates, 2 deployments, 2 baby girls, becoming godparents and on and on and on... Our journey through life has taken us places we could never have predicted together and I wouldn't take it back for all the money in the world. I am so grateful for our families friendship and the joy it has brought to all of our lives.

This charm means the world to me and every time I look at it it makes me happy and it reminds me of some wonderful times in my life with some amazing people. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for such a special gift and I value our friendship more than you will ever know!