This could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship...

This last weekend, we loaded up the kiddo in the pickup for a long overdue trip to see Anne and Eric in Jordan, MT. With the birth of their daughter Gwen, it was time for the little ones to meet and time for the Moms to spend some quality catch-up time together. It was a long trip, broken up by a stop in Missoula, but we made it and the snow had even melted to make things a little bit easier.

Funnily enough, Anne and I realized that even though we have known each other since kindergarten, this was probably the most continguous time we've ever spent together...that's what we get for being so spoiled as to live 10 minutes away from each other growing up. The guys didn't waste any time and kicked off the weekend by promptly breaking out the rifles and getting in some target practice on some unsuspecting tomatoes and squash that were unfortunate enough to be leftover in the garden after the first frost. This was a new experience for Tim, and Eric was a great (and patient) teacher...I'm worried he may have fueled a new obsession though, as Tim was discussing 'buying land and setting up a shooting range' on the trip home. ;o) We Moms joined a bit later and had fun dessimating a few tomatoes ourselves, and our wise teachers taught me how to use a scope (something I had successfully avoided, shooting skeet and birds).

We had a good time playing cards (Pinochle was the game of choice, and I think we came out pretty much tied) and we even got to get out for a walk, mostly to scope out the area for any potential antelope herds...however, you know you're in Jordan when you can play cards and hunt from your dining room at the same time, with the assistance of some high-powered spotting scopes and binoculars. ;o)

Mostly though, we spent time playing with the little ones. Gwen is a little cutie and they seem to like each other quite well...as evidenced by the fact that Gwen attempted eat Anna's arm when it got in range, though this might have just been because she was hungry. ;o) It was fun for us to see how much Anna has changed in a few months time, as well as (I think) encouraging to the shiny new parents that some of the less desirable aspects of those first few weeks (such as no sleep) will pass. :) We even broke out the little playmat "whackamadoodle" and let the girls try it out...see the video evidence below.

All in all, we had a great time and it was wonderful to spend time catching up with old friends, looking at old pictures, and even discussing our upcoming 10 year reunion. We were sad to leave, but not sad when we finally got back and had the 10 hour drive behind us! Anne, Eric and Gwennie, we can't say thanks enough for being such wonderful hosts and we can't wait to see you again soon!