4:30 a.m.

That's how late my friends and I stayed up on our quick overnight reunion trip last week.

I love that we are the kind of friends that can see each other after being away from each other for years, and still feel comfortable and excited to see each other, and still talk for hours about everything under the sun. It just felt good to be around people who have known me for so long, before I was a mother or teacher or wife.

I had great friends in high school. I have been blessed with many wonderful friends in life, but there was something special about this group of friends in high school. It seemed everyone appreciated everyone else for who they were, and we had similar values and the same sense of humor.

Our night out started with me traveling to Utah. I picked up Spring at her house and we drove together to Heather's house. Jamie and the other Heather met us there and we went out for dinner. Jamie's little boy Abric (9 months old) was the most patient little boy. He was a trooper hanging out with all of us older women, and he never seemed to mind all the waiting that he had to do.

We missed several of our other high school friends who live far away. . . Sheree, Nicole, and January. The rest of us got caught up on lots of things over dinner, and then one of the Heather's headed back to her family.

The remaining four of us drove to Park City to stay in this nice lodge, which our friend Gil (Heather G.'s husband) has been renovating with his company. We didn't get there until 10 o'clock and the fun was just getting started. We shared stories about our families and our joys and our challenges, and I learned so much about my friends and what has been going on in their lives. Spring, Jamie, and Heather all have four kids, so I loved hearing how they manage and stay sane. I took my photo albums along and we reminisced about the funny times we had in high school, too.

Before we knew it, it was midnight, then 2 o'clock, then 4. I finally had to hit the hay, and I think I was the first asleep. We slept until 9 or so (well, maybe not Jamie since Abric was up before then), then talked for a while, then hit the outlet malls, ate at Cafe Rio, watched a huge rainstorm, and headed back home.

Maybe it's the blogworld, or maybe we're just kindred spirits, but in many ways it felt like we haven't really been out of high school for fifteen years already. I'm forever thankful for good friends. Thanks for a wonderful weekend, everyone! Here's to a meeting in Chicago. . . or Jamaica or Kansas . . . next time with all of you! Love you all!