On the first day of Christmas my best friend gave to me … We’re celebrating the holidays, girlfriends and the wonderful gift of friendship.

Happy Holidays Girlfriends! It’s the magical season of showing the people we love how much they mean to us. It’s the time when we get to express our friendship, our gratitude and our love.

We’re celebrating the Twelve Days of Friendship with a daily reminder of the wonderful Gifts of Friendship. Join us as we unwrap each gift of friendship and share the wonders that friends add to our lives.

“I think we’re here for each other.” Carol Burnett

On this first day of Friendship, we celebrate knowing our friends are there for us.

Think of those friends who make your day with a phone call or note, a Facebook message or Twitter tweet. Who are the women who make you feel like you’re never alone? Who are the fabulous females who make you smile just thinking about their friendship and the happy memories that you’ve shared? Who comes to mind as a friend you can’t – and don’t want to – imagine going through life without?

It doesn’t take much to be a better friend – sometimes it’s just being there for each other.

Unwrap the gift of friends who are there for you. Pause to reflect on the times they’ve taken the late call from you or showed up on your doorstep to help. Be thankful for their thoughtfulness, the lessons they’ve taught you, the forgiveness they’ve shown you, the ways they’ve supported and encouraged your dreams. Admire the way they’ve accepted you, laughed or cried with you, be happy for the day your paths crossed and how that grew into beautiful friendships.

Be there for your friends. And be thankful and appreciative when they’re there for you. Life is better together – with our girlfriends!

And, come back for the next 11 days as we look at more of the great gifts of friendship.

CHRISTMAS DISCLAIMER: We want ALL WOMEN to feel welcome here at Girlfriendology. ALL WOMEN. That means you’re welcome here whether we vote, worship, dress or think alike – or not. You don’t have to be born in a certain decade, have reached a level of school or corporate office, or even live all in the U.S. ALL WOMEN need female friends. ALL WOMEN are welcome here.

So, why is this a “Christmas Disclaimer?’ We’re very conscientious that not all women celebrate Christmas. Some celebrate Hanukkah, others enjoy Kwanza or winter festivities. Some choose not to acknowledge any formal holiday around this time. That’s great. ALL WOMEN are welcome here. We just want to be authentic.

In my home (Debba here), we celebrate Christmas and I can’t make this holiday generic all the time – sometimes it is what it is, in this case, Christmas to me. Judi (our fabulous ‘Chief of Insanely Brilliant Ideas’) celebrates Hanukkah (and is our resident expert that there are ‘no good Hanukkah’ songs out there to share on Girlfriendology!). We have friends who are atheist or agnostic, pagan, who were raised Catholic or Protestant, and the majority that we don’t even know their beliefs. Every woman is welcome here!

Again, ALL WOMEN are welcome here. But we ask that you give us grace if I say ‘Christmas’ – it isn’t to imply that you need to celebrate or worship in any certain way. So, Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah! Joyous Kwanza! and Happy Winter! Any ‘excuse’ to celebrate and show our friends how much we care about this is okay with us! Or even just expressing our girlfriend gratitude regardless of a date/holiday … glad we have our girlfriends every day of the year!

Tags: 12 days of Christmas, 12 days of friendship, Christmas, Friends, friendship, Girlfriend Gifts, girlfriends, Hanukkah

This entry was posted on Monday, December 12th, 2011 at 6:50 pm and is filed under Be a Better FRIEND, Girlfriend Advice and Reviews. 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.