Lemonade

Not long ago, through the marvel that is Facebook, an old friend looked me up out of the blue. D was my first parenting buddy. We met a million years ago at a new mom's group when our now-15 year olds were tiny little babies. We didn't hit it off with many of the other moms--some of whom had clearly been driven a little bonkers by those post-partum hormones--so we mostly just hung out together. Given all the things that need to be done every day it amazes me to look back on that first baby time when all we had to do was nurse, change diapers, eat, nurse some more, and talk, talk, talk! D was the reason I never suffered any of that new mama isolation, and she really helped me build confidence as I muddled through with my new baby.

Eventually we lost touch. She moved north, we moved south, and somehow things got crazy. I often wondered how here family was doing but never really made the effort to find her, so I was more than touched when she looked me up. Since we've been back in touch I've been thinking back to 15 years ago and I feel like I've reclaimed some of those long lost new mom days. Of course I was delighted when she proposed a visit to Portland and I made great plans for all the things we could do while she was here this weekend.

I haven't seen D in a decade or so, but I was still crushed when she informed me that some kind of crud had gotten to her and her son and she'd be postponing the visit. I'd even set up a fun afternoon for The Princess so D and I could visit the sauna today! Never one to let free child care go to waste, I planned to sent The Princess anyway and go steam and sweat on my own but as it turned out, Lynn wanted to join me. Not only that, she wanted me to ride on the back of her bike!

I can't even tell you how fun this was. I felt like a little kid as I perched on the Xtracycle while we whizzed down the street. Lynn (and her Stoke Monkey) did all the work--there was nothing for me to do but grin and enjoy the sunshine. I really, really wished I'd had my camera with me, but otherwise our little excursion was the best. We rode all the way down to the river and back up the hill on a spectacularly gorgeous day.

The best part? Only a couple of years ago my dear friend Lynn had some very serious medical stuff going on. Very serious. Never in a million years did I think she'd be carrying me around town on the back of a bike! She keeps getting stronger and healthier. She makes me look like a slug and nothing could make me happier.

So it turned out to be the best day ever. I know I'll get to hang out with D soon, and that will be wonderful as well. But I am delighted that things turned out so well today. To top it off, D got me going with Skype and we managed to have a hilarious video chat which, while not a real visit, was a good preview.