Little friends

I have lots of updates - we've had a busy week! But I'm pretty worn out after our great weekend at Aaron and Jen's wedding in Ironwood, so I'll keep it short and do the rest of the updates (Mick & Clarissa's visit, the wedding, etc) in the next couple days. For now I just had to post these pictures...

The first is from a park playdate last week, with his friends Clark, Evan, and Maggie. The second is the same group, but 9 months ago (Zach in his helmet!, Clark, Maggie, & Evan). Look at how much they changed! But at the same time, it's also interesting to think about how they haven't.

We met these friends when the babies were all about 3 months old or less, and we could see even then that each one of them has their own special little personality, and those definitely haven't changed as they've grown. It's still hardest to get Evan in the picture, since he's always on the move, ready for the next challenge. Maggie is still the little chatterbox who is fascinated with all the other "babies" (she does not seem to consider herself one). Clark continues to be the mellow observer with the biggest smile. And our Zach... goofy and happy, ready to go with the flow. When you put them all together, you just never know what will happen!

I'm thrilled we've found these new friends to be a part of our lives. It has been very fun and often reassuring to watch the kids grow together, going through all the stages and milestones at their own paces. Their moms are a great resource for me, both on the days when I'm stir-crazy and need to get out of the house, and when I just need to talk about the challenges of raising a toddler with someone who is going through the experience at the same time. What would we do without our friends??