Pick Up The Phone:: National Call a Friend Day

Most of us know how friendships go, no matter what season of parenthood you’re in. You text friends on occasion, rarely have an uninterrupted phone conversation together, and maybe see each other a few times a year. Life gets hectic between work, kids, and activities. Plus, who has kids that suddenly want to talk to you, ask you questions, or demand your attention that ONE time you’re actually on the phone? 

Who’d have thought we’d need something like National Call a Friend Day to reconnect with a bestie?

Well, people, that’s where I am, with a lot of my friends.

I rarely talk to friends on the phone anymore. I text. Or, I send a Facebook message. With a toddler at home, I’m lucky to bathe every day and keep my family fed and clothed. 

My friend, Jess, and I have been besties since high school. For almost 23 years, she’s been the first one I call when I need her level-headed advice, a shoulder to cry on, and just to talk. When I moved out of state for college, we emailed, “chatted” online and called each other in the off-peak hours (you know, when you had to pay per minute for long-distance phone calls).

national call a friend day

When we had babies and I still lived out of state, we called each other almost weekly. Back then, we could talk on the phone if the baby was asleep! Texting just wasn’t quite the norm like it is now. Then, when I moved back here, we still talked quite a bit. In fact, we talked more on the phone more than we saw each other–because that was our season of life.  

Fast forward to having toddlers, big kids, and teenagers, all their activities, and our work schedules, we are lucky to talk once every couple of months. We exchange the occasional text or phone call. However, there’s one thing we do, like clockwork, twice a year.

Make a date: Put it on the calendar.

Every 6 months, we meet for dinner. Our birthdays are 6 months apart, which gives us a perfect mid-year reason to get together with absolutely no excuses. No husbands, no kids, just us. And we talk for hours on end.

The best part of this? We don’t skip a beat. Jess and I pick up right where we left off. We know each other so well, and most importantly, we have a mutual understanding that our season of life is hectic. She and I do not hold this against each other, which is a beautiful thing.

Of course, Jess is still the same person I call when I need to vent about something that would seem trivial to others. If I want advice on how to survive a parenting dilemma? I call her (or text). Her friendship is a constant in my life, and I’m so grateful for that.

I have other friends, that I just miss talking to. Some have moved away, and some just have crazy schedules. Aside from the occasional text message or social media comment back and forth, I miss the relationships I had with some of my friends. So, here I am, planning to make phone calls or ask for coffee dates in the very near future to catch up.  Life is short, friends. Don’t miss out on chances to stay in touch with those that mean the most to you.  

So, if you’ve found yourself drifting away from a friend, pick up the phone on National Call a Friend Day December 28th. As easy as it is to text or message someone, put in the extra effort to make that phone call and reconnect. Then, use that as a stepping stone and create a tradition to keep in touch beyond an occasional text message!

How do you stay connected to your friends now that you’re a mom?

tiffanifrost
Tiffani is wife to David and mother to 4 boys, and they live in their self-proclaimed “frat house” in Bennington. She is a Nebraska native, freelance writer, and certified group fitness instructor. She earned her Journalism degree from the University of Denver in 1999, and returned to Omaha in 2007. As an active family, they enjoy exploring local parks and trails, participating in races, and traveling. Tiffani is an avid triathlete and runner, and completed her first (but not last) Ironman race in 2016. She writes about her adventures on her blog MomCanTri.com.