Due to the General Election this week my social media feed has been saturated with political and sometimes rather antagonistic posts about personal voting preferences. It really got me thinking about how even like-minded individuals have very different views, just like within your own friendship circle. This really made me appreciate my girl gang, despite all our different life choices and decisions we all still look out for each other all these years later.

Friendships are an important part of my life. I am very lucky to still have the friends that I went to primary school with, through to friends that I met at university and work. The older you get life sometimes kicks you in the balls and you realise who is still there. The good times are fab to share but the foundation is ultimately built on the strength you give to each other when it’s needed. As you grow up sometimes your beliefs change and that can cause friendships to fade and disappear.

Holidays with my friends hold the best memories, my first holiday without my parents abroad was to Ibiza when I was 16. It was a pretty epic time and I still laugh at all we experienced. From the printed T-shirts we all wore (cringe) to the various holiday romances we all encountered! We spent the week sharing our wardrobes and spent our nights literally belly laughing together (probably alcohol fuelled) but generally just loving each others company! Some pretty interesting trips to Faliraki and Kos followed too, my mum commenting after one holiday with the girls that if it wasn’t for my tan I looked like I had been in hospital for 2 weeks! Not enough food and sleep I think.

Life gets much more complicated as you get older, decisions on what dress to wear on a Saturday night are replaced with more serious life dramas involving relationships, bills and jobs. Ultimately as friends you all take different paths in life and the dynamics change as they do but I have always found that with my group of friends, we always find a way back to each other even after gaps of silence.

I am sure like most people I look back at selfish times in my life when perhaps I wasn’t always there when my friends needed me but I think with true friendships that is forgiven. It definitely takes effort the older you get to schedule in time together as other commitments often take precedent. They say laughter is the best medicine and I often find whatever drama in my life, being with my friends albeit for just a day or night makes such a difference.

The timings of you life can also cause change as when some of us were marrying and settling down, others were travelling the world and enjoying single life. It’s very hard to share those times when in completely different phases of your life. That’s why it so important to work at friendships and when you do have, make time for each other.

Motherhood brings its own dimension to friendship and in the beginning you can’t imagine ever having the time to socialise, or even go on holiday with your closest friends again. That obviously gets easier as I am now finding out but I really feel like the first 10 months of my son’s life especially whilst breast-feeding I was quite absent! There really is nothing nicer though, than watching your friends love your children as much as they do you. They say friends are the family you choose and I really agree. There will always be arguments, tears and tantrums which all prove that you still care for each other.

I look forward to more holidays together in the future, more babies, making more memories and generally just enjoying my girl gang as much as possible. I hope whatever happens, however our lives change we always remain close, always have each other’s backs and always know how to enjoy a good Pavlova!!!

Kate xxxx