{ Weekend with Friends }

Disclaimer: All the good photos in this post were taken by Tim or Anna...I kinda borrowed them from Anna's blog. Thanks, Ann!

Anna, Chelle and I have been friends since we were wee little things. Actually, Anna is two months older than I, and our parents were friends before we were born--if I remember correctly, I think they even took a birth class together! It is one of the biggest blessings of my life that the three of us have not only stayed in touch, but have remained close friends for nearly three decades. Though we haven't lived near one another since early 2001, when I moved to Seattle, the companionship of these women as we navigate life--far from one another geographically, but close in our hearts--is an immeasurable treasure.

As husbands and children have gradually been added to the mix, it's become harder and harder to get together. That we were able to coordinate all our schedules and spend a weekend together is nothing short of miraculous! {Especially when you consider that only times that all of us--husbands and kids included--have ever been together were at my wedding and Anna's wedding, nearly three years ago!} Also providential is that Tim and Anna have a house big enough to comfortably house six adults, three kids, and two babies.

The whole group

Fun at the park

Katy Grace napping

Look--Mike put the baby to sleep!

One of many highlights for me was seeing Mike bond with the babies. He hasn't been around teeny tiny babies much, but he and Katy Grace took to each other and she spent a lot of time in his arms. And goodness, that little girl loves to talk--she babbles all the time! It's adorable and hilarious.

Some more highlights:

Finding prose and poetry us girls wrote as teenagers

Cooking together

Long chats over coffee

Beautiful weather

The guys enjoying beer and cigars

The kids' happy chatter

A nursery full of toys and laughter

Delicious food

A lazy Saturday with no agenda but to soak up one another's company

Oh--and did I mention that I got up on Saturday morning to find that they were having a "baby breakfast" in honor of Miss Peanut? Handmade buntings, homemade cinnamon rolls, fancy fizzy drinks, gorgeous flowers, and the cutest itsy-bitsy baby girl clothes you ever did see! I was so surprised!

Love these shoes that Annabelle found for Miss Peanut!

This photo was literally taken at midnight...just sayin'.

The whole weekend was a lot of work--especially for Tim and Anna--but so, so wonderful. Mike and I didn't even know if we could make it 'til a few days before: Mike's grandma passed away earlier in the week, and the funeral just happened to be the day before we were to leave. I'm so thankful that we were able to go. Hopefully we can do this again...and again...and again...over the years!