I shouldn’t admit this, but until this past Saturday the last time we went out with friends was well over 3½ years ago. We lined up babysitters, cooked a home-made dinner, baked a chocolate babka, and ran ventured out on a very blustery end-of-March evening to spend some time with old friends. And after a few minutes figuring out what to do with ourselves since we didn’t have to entertain, hold, feed, or play with anyone for an entire evening, we were back to our old selves—just catching up and having a good time over good food & drinks.
Back home, Sophia shared her all-time favorite cartoon (My Neighbor Totoro) with my nephew and they played together, chased each other, and even helped with Eliza. Later that evening while getting dressed for bed, Sophia declared that she wants “Alex to stay here ALL the time!” and so do we!
And as the expression goes, “when it rains, it pours,” and we continued our friend-themed weekend by hosting another set of dear friends on Sunday evening for a get-together and a playdate for our kids. Get-togethers used to be simple: wine, cheese, good bread, some appetizers. They still are relatively simple: hummus, veggies, pita chips, pizza, beer, wine, and mocktails. Except that, as I found out, playdates are like children: they require a a third, sweet course. Our friends offered to bring dessert and I couldn’t, and frankly wouldn’t, say no to dessert. Fully expecting brownies or some other one-mixing-bowl wonder, I was astonished to discover that homemade dessert was ice cream and not one, but two flavors.
The highlight of the evening was seeing Sophia interact with her new friend. It was pure joy seeing their happiness in playing together, learning to share, understanding one another, and communicating. Though they started out shy, the girls were fast friends by the time everyone said their goodbyes. And once again, Sophia said that she wants her new friend to be here “all of the time.” I think we will have to schedule another playdate soon and maybe this time it will be our turn to make dessert. It will be difficult to match two ice-creams!
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