Maryland, Meet Virginia

This past weekend we were privileged to host our good friends fromVirginia Beach - Bryan, Janine, Abbie and Nate.  You may remember Janine as one of my former co-workers.  Abbie and Jack are 4.5 months apart and good buds.  And Nate was born about 6 weeks after Jude.  In fact, the last time Janine and I saw each other was when I escaped from the movers and stopped by to see the new baby after she had just got home from the hospital.  Clearly it has been too long since I got to hang out with "the other Janine." 

Cue the "Reunited" soundtrack!

I had big plans to photograph the reunion weekend.  Jack and Abbie's initial greetings, Jude and Nate's playtime...

... the men watching football, the ladies in the kitchen... I think sometimes I forget I only have two hands which, for the most part, were occupied with food - preparing, cooking and of course EATING, breaking apart toddler toy-sharing spats, and cuddling and nursing babies.  If only I could employ a full-time family historian to record all these precious moments as a growing family!

I did get a few shots of our day at Watkins park.  Abbie got to ride a horse,

we found out that our fearless son gets a bit nervous on carousels,

and all 8 of us got to ride together on a "choo-choo" train. 

In addition to discovering that I've inherited my mother and grandmother's knack for overestimating food quantities (we're on day 3 of steak leftovers), ...

 I also appreciated having someone to share a girly movie with.  Between the older kiddos' bedtime and naptime, we were actually able to watch all 4 hours of "North and South."  We took popcorn, homemade milkshakes and babies to the office and got our girly movie fill while the big boys watched football.

It's convenient having friends at the same place in life as you.  We can both attempt to keep our toddlers in church as long as possible, which ends up not being long at all.  We can both end up missing over half the sermon because two little babies decided it was time to eat.  We can ask for the same seating at a restaurant - 2 adults, 1 booster seat and 1 carseat sling.  You have a buddy to hang out in the restroom with while your kids "run off the wiggles" that were making eating lunch somewhat difficult.  You both realize the importance of not allowing the toddlers to fall asleep in the car on the way home.  And because of all the similarities you never run out of conversation.

Both Jon and I feel that God has blessed us beyond what we deserve and we love to share this blessing with others.  Sometimes this house feels huge with just the four of us, and I have to admit, I'm not crazy about all the cleaning that comes with the extra square footage.  But when the rooms are filled with friends and family it feels just right.  When the kids are running around the yard, the babies are playing in the toy room, the men are in the den, the woman are chatting in the kitchen.  When the bedrooms are full to overflowing and we run out of hot water during shower times.  That's when our house is the perfect fit!