One of the best things about growing up in a small town is that you make friends for life early on. Both Barry and I have friends that we’ve known nearly our whole lives, which I find quite unique and special. I have a solid group of A-Town girls that I consider best friends and Barry has his B-Town boys.
Aside from getting together and having a splendid time with our friends, it is an opportunity to recall funny memories of times in the past. This past weekend we got to meet up with two of Barry’s “oldest” friends, Tye and Jeff. All three of them go wayyyyyyy back to elementary school and now are all grown up with little girls of their own.
Jeff, who is never really lacking for something funny to say, has a memory of a steel trap and sometimes he shares hilarious stories about Barry. I love it. Some of the gems include the time Barry beat him up for not sharing Valentine’s Day candy or Barry’s P.E. spandex that made more of a regular appearance on the scene than just P.E.. I feel like I shouldn’t go into detail about Barry beating up Jeff or his spandex out of love for Barry, so I’ll just let sleeping dogs lie, but I die laughing every time. (It should be noted that during this visit neither of those stories were mentioned…hmmm, kind of sad)
Maggie and Gracie spent some time playing on Gracie’s toy and I think that Jeff nearly gave his wife, Jill, a heart attack after he had their daughter join in the fun and she nearly toppled over. Kerry, Tye’s wife, and I had a hard time remembering what it was like to have a little, teeny nugget, as Jenna quietly snoozed away wrapped up in her cozy Moby Wrap next to Jill. Gracie gave Maggie a run for her money when it came to sharing a little plastic Easter egg with a quarter in it. Why is it that they always love the things that aren’t really toys?
We went to Alki and walked along the shoreline, passing the strollers and babes back and forth between the Papas and Mamas. At one point Jill, Kerry and I realized that our pregnancy/birth/motherhood conversation was probably a little too much for the group of young girls in front of us because suddenly they stopped their conversation and started looking sideways at one another. Eventually they pulled off and let us pass and we continued on our conversation. I have no doubt that eventually the little girls will be chattering away together, creating memories and building friendships that will last a lifetime. All because their papas grew up together in the same small town.
