Happy Birthday to my sweet friend Shara!

 Today is my friend Shara's birthday so I was reflecting on the wonderful and precious friendship that we have shared for 11 years!

I will forever grateful to my friend Judy Calvert for introducing us. Judy brought Shara to a Stampin Up Workshop I was teaching. I didn't see Shara again for several weeks and then one Sunday I looked up from the organ at chuch and saw them out in the congregation. We chatted briefly after chuch and then began talking some and chatting on the phone.  They lived on Fairchild Air Force Base a couple streets over from us. Shara and her husband Greg had were still newlyweds when we met  I remember right away her husband was gone on a military assignment so I offered to pick her up for church. The next week I had them over dinner and we discovered we'd hit it off right away with Greg also because as he came into the kitchen he was hinting & wondering if there was dessert! :)

Thus it began...the sweetest friendship ever! The awesome thing was we were in such different phases of our lives yet it still worked. They had only been married for a year! We had our 3 children! God just knew what we all needed at that point and time. Shara and I spent alot of time together...we had the same interests and hobbies and Greg & Jim got along splendidly. Our children loved Greg & Shara as well!

One thing we did every Sunday evening after church was either go get Taco Time and bring it back to our home or the guys made omelette's...THEN...we played games! We got hooked on a card game called Hand & Foot and let me tell you we were obsessed! :) Soooo much fun!

Greg & Shara received military orders to move and one short year after we met they moved to Florida. Sad for us...happy for them as they were within a couple hours of family which is so very precious to them. They moved on Thanksgiving Day after Shara and I made a yummy turkey dinner with all the trimmings. Oh that sure was a tough day...we ALL cried & cried! Don't you worry though we got in one last game of Hand and Foot before they hit the road for the 2,800 mile journey to Florida!

Over the last 10 years we have been so blessed to be able to travel back & forth to see each other. Many events have happened over that time span...some so very wonderful...some so very hard...however through it all our friendship has stood the test of time and distance.

God has blessed Greg & Shara with 3 little miracles...Jannah Grace, Jordan Gregory & Jamison Glenn...just know how much those kiddos were prayed for and wanted! We continue to be at different phases of life...yet I think that's what has helped keep it going. I've travelled to see them 6 times and Shara has been here 2 times. She's coming again in exactly 1 month and I'm so excited I can hardly stand it! Greg's keeping the kids and we're just gonna play play play!!!!

My life has been so blessed and changed by Shara and the friendship we share! She is one of the kindest & genuine people I know. Her gentle spirit has ministered to me so through the years. We have laughed till we cried and we have cried till there are no more tears. A true & constant friend that is what Shara is to me! She is like a sister to me and she was one of the first people I would say that about after my sister passed away. I love getting to be like an aunt to the 3 Bailey J's! Shara & I share an age difference of about 12 years yet that has never mattered. I have learned so much from her and her tender and precious love for our Lord!

I just want to wish Shara the very Happiest Birthday and 

remind her just how very much she is loved by me!