Family...the friends you choose.

I've spent much of my adult life throwing around the cliche "Friends are the family you choose." To say that I've been blessed with wonderful friends is an understatement. (I was the girl who was heartbroken to whittle my bridal party down to seven bridesmaids and two usherettes; close friends got the ax and I hated it.) While my friends are wonderful and I consider so many of them family, recently I've been reminded that just as friends are the family you choose, family can be the friends you choose. 

Recently we've been spending a lot of time with my siblings. You already know that Becky was one of my best friends in high school, so when she married my brother it was rather perfect. Even better is that Michael and Randy have grown to really like each other. Becky and I often talk about how similar the guys are, and I couldn't be happier about it; both of them are wonderful men. 

When we're lucky enough to have Courtney home, the six of us (Courtney, Randy, Becky, Finn, Michael and I) get together for dinner, drinks and laughter. If you had told me ten years ago (hell, if you had told me two years ago) that my siblings would be some of my favorite people and best friends in the world, I probably wouldn't have believed you. I'm grateful everyday though, that somewhere in between childhood and adulthood I grew to not just love my brother and sister, but grew to like them.