I love my independence. I love that I can read, shop, eat and dress as I please. I love that I can travel, own property, have a business and make my own decisions. I can vote, worship and express my opinion. I love the freedom and protection bought by the dedication of decades of women and men.

And fortunately, that independence allows me the opportunity to be dependent. I’m blessed to have a dependable husband, new roof (yeah!), dog (the cat isn’t always dependable!) and 4-year old car. And I’m so honored to have friends, on whom I can depend. Thoughtful, helpful, wonderful, beautiful girlfriends who are there for me to get together with for a movie (thanks Julie!), to take care of that dog (thanks Penny and Jill!), share ideas/info for Girlfriendology (thanks Barb, Terri, Joanne, Sue, Judi, etc.), and who look out for me at all times (too many to name! Thanks to you all!). I depend on all of you to help me reach my dreams and live the life I imagine.

Who do you depend on? What girlfriends are there for you to dream with, scheme with or just laugh with? What friends make your day whenever you’re together?

Celebrate independence and dependence this weekend – with your girlfriends. Celebrate friendship and freedom. Have a great 4th of July weekend. Spend time together with your girlfriends and enjoy life. Those are the happy times from which memories are made. And, remember to …

… Be a better friend – because life really is better together with your girlfriends!

Crystal Light + Lilith Fair + Girlfriendology Twitter Party = Tickets, Products & WINNERS!

Love LILITH? Gotta keep cool in the summer with some CRYSTAL LIGHT? Then join us for the:

@CrystalLight @Girlfriendology
#CrystalLightLilith Twitter Party
Wednesday, July 7th 3-4pm ET / noon-1pm PT

We’ll chat about Summer, the Concerts, staying cool and hydrated and we’ll give away:

* 10 Tickets to 2010 Lilith Fair - Celebrating women in music like Sarah McLachlin, Sheryl Crow, Queen Latifah and many, many more!
* Crystal Light- and Lilith-branded merchandise and Crystal Light Pure Fitness samples

Here’s all the info and a place to register for a reminder.

Share with your girlfriends and double your chances (they’ll take you and you’ll take them!) to go to the Summer’s HOTTEST Concert and win some of the COOLEST Crystal Light refreshments. Thanks Crystal Light and Lilith Fair!

July Girlfriendology Book Club – What are you reading?

Whenever I mention my Book Club, women ask: “What are you reading?” Well, that’s up to YOU!

Each month we ask for YOUR recommendations and you recommended “Women, Food and God,” by Geneen Roth. JOIN US …

Monday, July 26th from 7-8pm ET

Now we’re asking YOU: Should we hold the Book Club on Girlfriendology or on Twitter? Share what you think on our Facebook page (as well as more Book Club suggestions!).

And THANKS to the amazing women who joined us Monday night for the June Book Club. There were some amazing connections, great conversations and shared support. THANKS! We had a fabulous discussion on Eat, Pray, Love. Fabulous, fun female friends!!

Stop by to the Girlfriendology Book Club Book Store!

This week on Girlfriendology …

* Girlfriend Pals make the best Spa Gals! Need to Relax? Rejuvenate? and Reconnect with your Girlfriends? Then you need a spa trip with your favorite female friends! Recently we interviewed Spa Home lifestyle guru (and a great girlfriend!) CANDY SILVASY. (Listen to the interview! It’s very inspiring and shares lots of great girlfriend advice on making your home more spa-like as well as recommendations for girlfriend spa trips, etc.) Candy also kindly shared … Read More »

* Crystal Light and Lilith Fair – Twitter Party with Girlfriendology! Girlfriends share great info, right? Fun events, healthy tips, opportunities to WIN stuff … 1. It’s Summer. We’re thirsty. We (and our kids, girlfriends, etc.) need to stay hydrated. There’s a cool way of rejuvenating our bodies with CRYSTAL LIGHT. (Warning: this post/Twitter party may make you THIRSTY!) 2. It’s Summer. And a great concert celebrating women in music is coming! Returning after a 10 year hiatus, LILITH FAIR, is bringing amazing female musicians …  Read More »

* Seeking BFFs – Courageously! Have you reached out to find new girlfriends? Just guessing – why not? As  much as we KNOW we need friends – they provide support, laughter, community and much more, it’s not something that we busy females seem to do. And, before we can ‘be a better friend,’ we need to find the friends to be better to! Here’s a guest blog by RACHEL BERTSCHE, from MWF Seeking BFF, on finding new friends (and listen to us interview her this FRIDAY, 2pm EST/11am PST on BlogTalkRadio!): A few weeks ago, a fellow book-clubber asked me how my friend search was going. I told her … Read More »

* Be a Better Friend – to a Friend during Pet Loss – We’ve covered how to be a better friend when a friend loses a parent or is dealing with cancer, but what about how to be a better friend when a girlfriend loses her beloved pup? My BFF Terri (who is so thoughtful and sweet that she inspired this Girlfriendology blog) had a terrible tragedy over the weekend. She and her husband had to put their sweet, funny ‘puppy’ Monty to sleep. He had been dealing with seizures and medical issues for a while, but they’ve  … Read More »

* Girlfriend Gifts for Friends who have Lost a Pet – Knowing that your friends share your pain helps when you lose a pet. Girlfriend gifts are a great way to express that concern, sympathy and friendship. I remember when Stella, our 12-year old beloved golden retriever, died. It broke our hearts and there was little that could console that sadness. Thankfully our friends understood and offered their support, sympathy and sentiments.They reached out to us to help us deal with losing a beloved pet. They also offered some very … Read More »

This Week’s Girlfriendology Classics:

* Girlfriend Get-togethers – spend time with friends. Need some ‘girlfriend therapy‘? Call up the gals!

* The Health Benefits of Good Friends - Seriously! Friendships keep us healthier, happier, less stressed and live longer (and laugh lots more!).

* Furballs, Hugs and Girlfriend Gratitude – Thankful for friends who help during the tough, rough (ruff!) times.

* New in Town? How did YOU make friends? – Finding new friends – when you move or just need some new friends!

Girlfriendology BlogTalkRadio guest: RACHEL BERTSCHE

What happens when you set out to look for BFFs? We’re going to find out when we talk with RACHEL BERTSCHE. Rachel is a web producer and journalist in Chicago. She’s a former editor at O, the Oprah Magazine and has written for dozens of publications. She blogs about her search for BFF on MWF Seeking BFF. Her book, MWF Seeking BFF, will be out in 2012. Listen in as we talk about this journey to find a BFF and the great girlfriend advice she can offer! JOIN US – Friday – 2-2:30pm EST on BlogTalkRadio.

And get some great, relaxing spa/home advice from our great guest (and girlfriend) from last week – CANDY SILVASY, aka: “Art of the Spa.” She’s traveled to over 90 spas in 8 countries, has authored spa books and created celebrity spas. LISTEN IN!

Red, White and Blue Girlfriend Gifts – Seriously!

* THE RED TENT, by Anita Diamant – This book was a favorite of our neighborhood Book Club.

* WHITE FLIP CAMCORDER – Do you FLIP?! I love mine! Super easy-to-use and now in UltraHD.

* VERA BRADLEY OLIVIA NAVY MEDITERRANEAN PURSE – Perfect, lightweight Summer bag.

* KITCHENMAID EMPIRE RED STAND MIXER – 5-quarts, 10-speeds, great fun for gourmet girlfriends.

* WHITE GOLD DRAGONFLY DIAMOND EARRINGS – Perfect for a Summer birthday!

* LUCKY BRAND BREEZY NAVY SUMMER SCARF – Cotton and cool.

Girlfriendology Girlfriend Gifts – Perfume, jewelry and more. Exclusive Girlfriendology gifts, all made in the U.S. and great ways to remind her how much her friendship means to you.

Thanks for shopping from these and our other affiliates for girlfriend gifts and more! Sierra Trading Post – Great Deals, Great Brands, UncommonGoods – uncommon gifts!, Handbag Heaven – Best Selling Handbags, OldNavy.com – Trends & Sales (great combo!), American Express® Gift Cards – for every occasion, Affordable Scarves – Style and savings!, GiftTree.com – gifts, gift baskets, wine, etc.!, Crocs.com – Feel the love!, Gift Ideas from Vera Bradley, Endless.com – shoes, purses & more, and save big at drugstore.com!, Orbitz.com- Get outta town girlfriend! Orbitz.com  has LOTS of vacation specials for you and your friends. You GO girlfriend!

Note: Girlfriendology is funded by affiliate shopping – so shop away! (Please, for your girlfriends?!)

Inspiration

“When I say, ‘I love you,’ it’s not because I want you or because I can’t have you. It has nothing to do with me. I love what you are, what you do, how you try. I’ve seen your kindness and your strength. I’ve seen the best and the worst of you. And I understand with perfect clarity exactly what you are. You’re a hell of a woman.”

Spike to Buff

Feel loved girlfriend! You’re a hell of a woman! Have a fun, friend-filled 4th of July weekend!

Tags: 4th of July, blogtalkradio, Book Club, bookclub, eat pray love, Facebook, freedom, friendship, Girlfriend Gifts, independence Day, inspiration, MWF seeking BFF, online book club, rachel bertsche, women food and god

This entry was posted on Friday, July 2nd, 2010 at 9:18 am and is filed under Be a Better FRIEND, Girlfriend Gifts, Podcasts/BlogTalkRadio Interviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.