My Word I Love These Girls

There are many advantages of having children. They bring you joy, they make you laugh, they take care of you and wipe your butt when you get old....I said butt, I am sorry about that.

But one of the benefits that has come with the progeny, and a benefit that I wasn't expecting, is...... their friends. In this specific instance, Cartoon Girl's friends. Or as they call themselves..."The Posse". Who knew that I could gain 5 extra daughters without having to actually gestate them and birth them. I get all the benefits without all the messiness. Excellent.

These girls, should I really call them girls since they are all 22 y.o. and some are getting close to 23? Anyways, my "daughters" have known eat other for varying lengths of time. Some knew each other in grade school, then some came along in Junior High and the group as a whole finally came together in their sophomore year of high school. It feels like forever but it has really only been eight years. How can it be just eight years?

They have been through thick and thin together. Joy and tears. Laughter and the occasional pain and fight. But always together. They have all attended different colleges or taken other paths that didn't involve college. But though it all they have stuck together.

Because Cartoon Girl is home for a visit this weekend she arranged for the rest of The Posse to come over for an "overnight" visit. Not all come be here (we were missing two) but the rest came, ate, laughed and brought joy to me.
I wish that I could say that I have always whipped out my camera to take pictures of all the gatherings over the years but I have not. Sigh.

There have many gatherings at our house over the years. Most of The Posse do not live in close proximity. They are scattered over a 15-20 mile radius but that doesn't stop them. They need to be together I think to keep themselves grounded. It is interesting that many of them are doing something that is of a creative nature. There is Cartoon Girl obviously. There is also an aspiring photographer, an artist. Just interesting that they all found each other at a school with 800 other students. I think it was that Lord of the Rings planner that Ashley had that sort of opened the flood gates. They all loved LOTR and it brought them together and they have grown up together.

Cartoon Girl and Daughter Ahren doing some kind of dance. I was laughing so hard that I couldn't take a good picture.

They always arrive with hugs and kisses for "Mama Quigg" (that's me) and then there is much laughter and general hanging together. The pantry is raided on a general basis and this time I showed Daughter Ahren how to make popcorn the "Alton Brown" way.
I made pizza again this time, like I have made many times before. We consumed three half - sheet pan pizzas. Thank goodness I made enough dough. These girls can eat pizza let me tell you. They are also fine with the fact that the pizzas come out of the oven one at a time and are hand made just for them. Covered with love I tell them.
Our long counter has often been filled with The Posse, eating, talking. I just feel privileged that they let me hang around and participate in their wide ranging (and they are wide ranging believe me) discussion on movies, cartoons, literature and a host of other things. These are well read and intelligent girls I can assure you. They are hillarious too.
And as is the usual pattern, this morning I made them pancakes like I have every other morning that they have been there. Pancakes using Grandma Pringle's recipe. Because it is tradition. They have coffee now with their pancakes rather than milk but I wouldn't miss making them pancakes for the world.
I hope there never comes a day when I will be denied the pleasure of seeing their pile of shoes at the back door, and hearing their voices and laughter in my kitchen and in the basement. And even though they are now adults, living their own lives, going to school, paying their bills, in some cases raising younger siblings, they will always be my daughters of the heart.
Daughters Whitney, Ahren, Clarice, Emily, Michelle and Cartoon Girl I will love all of you forever. Cartoon Girl you are the daughter that I birthed into this world and I love you. Your wonderful "Posse" friends are the daughters of my heart and I love them too.