Friends Forever

Last week John picked me up in Toronto on my way back from the dreaded Fort Nelson (imagine a town without reliable cell coverage, email access and TIM HORTON's) and we stayed with Ana and Emily for a night. There is no way to describe the amount of joy it brings me to wake up in their house and see that little bum and smile first thing. Here we were, in her parents' bed at 7am and she is standing outside the bedroom door at 18 months just after using her potty and counting to 10 (on her own!!). Wasn't it just yesterday that I saw her little face being squished against the hospital bed as she was being delivered? She calls me Aunt Jen in that little voice and I want to die. The entire time we were together I couldn't help but marvel at the fact that in 2 years from now, we will all be standing in our pjs or undies some weekend in Ottawa starring at B3 as though he/she was some alien because it feels like it was "only yesterday" that I was sitting at this computer writing this very blog...

From Ana's we went to Margo's and there, another miracle in action. Addison running around the house, rolling her arms, incriminating herself as we sing "who stole the cookie from the cookie jar" with a huge grin. She can't call me Aunt Jen yet, but she certainly treated me like one of her trusty favourites when she sat down on my lap on Saturday morning to pet the dogs and to share her empty Tupperware container. We celebrated her 1-year birthday and again, I couldn't help but be amazed at what one year can bring.

Later in the day we visited Nicole, Darren and Baby Carys. Carys was only about 6 weeks old which gave us a really good idea of what to expect in September. The little family looked so darn cute, happy and relaxed. Nicole has been a great sounding board all through this pregnancy because there are things that I know she will just understand. I guess that is what happens when you have been friends since grade 5! We didn't take any pictures of our visit (duh!), but I thought I would post my favourite of the new mom and baby here for all to see...

On Sunday we stopped in for a quick bite with Gihad, Caroline and Eli before heading back to Ottawa. I was good and ready to get home with my little family but, the time with family and friends reminded me of how lucky John and I are to have bumped into each other, but also to have been included in each other's lives entirely through the acceptance of family and friends (which I am sure wasn't easy especially in the beginning because of my history). While I know that B3 will be loved by all the wonderful people in our lives today, my biggest wish for baby is that he/she will grow up having tons of fun and building new relationships that are just as strong as the ones that John and I have built over the years.