Weekend With Friends

In Mi Casa Es Su Casa (My Home Is Your Home), I wrote about looking forward to friends spending the weekend with us - friends whom we were meeting for the first time in person. They arrived on Thursday evening from Illinois, near Chicago, which is about a 7-hour drive.

As soon as their little girl, Gabbie, walked into our house, she came right up to Matthew and wanted to shake his hand! Unfortunately, I hadn't taught Matthew how to shake hands yet. He can, however, give high-5's so we tried to high-5 Gabbie instead. Matthew wasted no time in charming Jodee and Jen with his hilarious fake laugh and toothy grins. Gabbie, who is 2 weeks younger than Matthew, impressed us with her walking prowess and consistent vocalizations.

Toddler "interaction" is always so entertaining, even if merely playing nicely next to each other and not necessarily involving one another.

They were so cute playing next to each other in the corn box at Purina Farms.

They had a blast in our backyard "toddler water park", which is comprised of a water table, baby pool, and sprinkler mat.

They enjoyed the wagon ride together.

They had fun on the swings at the park.

The weekend was not without a first for me, an element of danger, if you will. I saw a 3-foot long copperhead snake for the first time in my 6 years of living here. Ack! It was in the grass at the winery. I was maybe two feet away from it when I spotted it. I backed away fearfully and quickly. Jodee took pictures.

We had an awesome time showing them around town and getting to know them. We're already looking forward to the next opportunity to get together. Because of our mutual friend, Angela, we had the pleasure of meeting such a great family. Because of Matthew and Gabbie, our lives are enriched with more wonderful friendships.

Thank you, Jodee, for many of the great photos.