Old friends, new places

One of the more fun things about parenting is seeing my kids with those of my pre-kid friends, especially friends from way-back when.  I've known Rachel for most of my life because we attended the same elementary school and took ballet classes at the same studio.  She is a year older than me, though, so we were never in the same classes.  Once we were both in the ballet company class, we started sharing a carpool and became virtually inseparable around the time I was 12 or 13.  I have so many happy memories of our friendship - slumber parties, 90210/Melrose Place nights, melting peanut butter and chocolate chips together into the most excellent treat on earth, swimming at the neighborhood pool, taking Seventeen magazine quizzes, shopping at "the mall", ballet rehearsals, Nutcracker performances, riding the ski bus, and wonderful camping trips with her family.  In the years since high school, we have managed to visit periodically as each of us has moved around the country, attended grad school, married and had children.  Steve and I are lucky to count not just Rachel, but also her awesome husband Nate, among our friends.  There were an especially terrific few years when they lived in Maine and we lived in Boston and we managed to visit a bit more.  We also get the occasional holiday season when they are in Bellingham at the same time we are.  

Now, though, they live in Seattle, so the last time we saw them was about a year and a half ago.  The girls really hit it off on that visit  (they had played together before as babies/toddlers, but of course didn't remember) as we hit up some playgrounds in the freezing cold, terrorized Woods Coffee and did some mid-winter swimming at the community pool.  

Anyway, all that was a long lead in to our quick visit this summer.  They were visiting Maine so we googled parks and met up in Portsmouth, NH for a picnic.  Steve and Nate couldn't join us and we didn't have nearly enough time, but we spent such a fun afternoon together.  Molly, Isla and Grace seemed to have a blast together, so much so that we practically had to pry them out of our car to go our separate ways.  I was also so happy to introduce Henry to them and daydream about how he and the baby boy Rachel is expecting will continue the friendship tradition, not to mention the chance to catch up on life with such a dear friend.  

 

Till next time, guys!  Whenever and wherever that may be!