Sunrise, sunset and wasn't it yesterday that they were small??

On our last morning in Myrtle Beach, I went to the balcony to listen to the waves and I noticed that the sun was making its appearance. I went back into our room to grab my camera bag and lenses that I brought. I took some photos of the sunrise, adjusting some of the settings as well as changing out the lenses. I liked how some of the pictures turned out...

On the drive back, when we were close to home, the sun was setting. You know when the sun is at the place in the sky that makes driving west annoying? The sun was in a bad location vis a vis seeing the road for several miles. At least we were close to home at that point… I couldn't help but remember standing on the balcony of our hotel room hours earlier and watching the sun rise and now here was that same orb rendering the drive tricky. Sunrise, sunset. The new becomes old. The only thing that stays the same is that everything changes.

As the chorus from the song from Fiddler on the Roof goes:

Sunrise, sunset

Sunrise, sunset

Swiftly flow the days

Seedlings turn overnight to sunflowers

Blossoming as we gaze

Sunrise, sunset

Sunrise, sunset

Swiftly fly the years

One season following another 

Laden with happiness and tears

{I know it's a wedding song but I think the chorus is applicable to anything!}

When we moved into our house, I was pregnant with Alyssa, Jacob was four and Abby was two years old. Jacob made fast friends with a boy a few houses down from ours. We became friends with boy's parents. The boys would grow up together as friends- engaging in shenanigans from the get go. Some of those shenanigans we are just now learning about from Jacob since we can't get him in trouble anymore...

The spring/ summer following our move into the house, Alyssa was a baby. Our neighbor friends told us in early spring that they were expecting a baby later in the summer. We all hoped that if the baby was a girl, they would become friends just as our boys had become friends. The baby was a girl whom our friends named Avery.

Avery and Alyssa would go on to become friends though their earliest interactions were on the inauspicious side. Avery's mom and I would occasionally watch each other's kids if one of us needed to run out quickly for something during the day. One afternoon, I was watching Avery at our house.  She was probably seven months old which would have put Alyssa at about fifteen months old. The two girls were used to seeing each other outside as we all spent time outside watching the older kids as they played out in the cul de sac. But Avery being a baby meant that there wasn’t a whole lot of interaction among the girls yet. 

So on this afternoon, when Alyssa woke up from her nap, she saw baby Avery sitting on the floor playing with toys. Alyssa's eyes lit up at the sight of Avery and a big smile flashed on her face. Her toddler addled legs slowed her down some but there was no denying that she was making a beeline for Avery. With her arms outstretched, it seemed obvious that Alyssa intended to show Avery exactly how happy she was to see Avery sitting on the floor in our house by enveloping her in a hug. Avery, too, sensed the intentions of Alyssa's movements but she was not certain at all that she wanted to be on the receiving end of Alyssa's affections. Her little lips began to tremble, and she held up her arms in the air while looking at me as if to say, "Rescue me from the mini person coming towards me!" I scooped Avery up in my arms and reminded Alyssa that we needed to be gentle with babies. 

Ok, once they were on the same developmental phase which was basically when Avery was no longer a baby, the two of them became thick as thieves. Play dates at each other's houses, sleepovers, going to the pool together, traveling together- you name it, they have done it together. Now, they may go to college together, they may not. If they don't go to college together, they will have eighteen years of living near each other with memories to last a lifetime.  And mama has a picture or two or two thousand to jar their memories should that need arise :)

At the pumpkins patch- The best pumpkins are that way!

Smiles n' hugs- no more tears!

Welcome to my crib!

More hugs- Alyssa’s crib is missing two slats because she kicked one of the slats out one day and Donnie had to remove one next to it so her head wouldn’t get stuck in the missing slat area. She’s kept on us our toes since day one!! It’s a good thing she’s a cute as a button…

What in tarnation is this thing and will it interfere with hugs??

Diagnosis- it’s harmless!!

The Princess A’s at church

Jeepin’

Follow me kid- I’ll get you some eggs

I’m going to need your basket though

Gee, if only there was a mom around to pull both of us...

Hydration break....

Let’s share our snacks

Everyone needs a hand to hold onto

And older sisters don’t hurt either

Hooray for friends with sno-cone makers!

Silly is as silly does

Just drinkin' the Kool-aid at the older sibs' Kool-aid stand

Hours and hours at the pool

Fall fun

Dayton Dragons game

At our local “beach”

Getting ready to go to Kiawah Island, SC

…and the following year 

In S. Carolina

Dragons game last summer

At Myrtle Beach over the weekend

Life is sweeter with a life long best friend!