My cousin came to visit us this past weekend and to meet V for the first time. It was incredibly exciting to be reunited since we hadn't seen each other since last summer. The last time she hugged me there was a sizable bump that separated us... now that bump is four months old and took to her aunty as if she already knew they were going to be best friends. It was so nice to have our house filled with her laughter, to exchange hugs, to talk late into the night with cans of diet coke swiftly accumulating on the kitchen counter. We shared our joys and our sorrows and picked up right where we left off. It felt comforting to be in the company of someone we know well and trust. There's a comfort level there that has been built over the years; over joint vacations, over summers spent on trampolines, over pepto bismol pink birthday parties festooned with dozens of balloons and weddings. We've been through a lot together - the ups and downs of friendship, family drama, personal drama and general growing up goodness. We've watched each other fall in love and have our hearts broken, we've helped each other navigate the windy roads of big life decisions and we've laughed and cried so much along the way. I've had a lot of people come and go in my life and she has always been a constant. 

It's such a privilege, I believe, to know someone for so long. I watched her go from a toddler to a teenager and almost overnight blossom into a young lady. It only felt right that the weekend we celebrated love, life and blossoming that nature would shower us with her own most beautiful blossoms. On Monday morning she climbed into bed with V and I, all of us in our pajamas, and we just played and cooed and sipped steaming cups of coffee. The rain poured down outside and it just felt so cozy and wonderful in our little blue cabin. We put V down for a nap, refilled our cups of coffee and talked over some waffles drowned in Nutella. We kept pushing back her leaving time until it couldn't be pushed back anymore...

And though she left us with a heavy heart from parting there was also so much gratitude and warmth from the time we spent enjoying each other's company.