Some more summer

I've written about friends and friendships and the importance and blessings of them many times.  Physical therapy school bred friendships that couldn't be anything but close because of the sheer amount of time we all spent together.  Many of us were married in the same year...the same month as a matter of fact.  Most of us have kids the same ages.  Several of us have remained close even though miles may separate us.  My wonderful friend Stephanie grew up in Nebraska as did her husband.  Both of their parents are still in Lincoln/Omaha, so even though she and her family live in AZ now, she and her kids come back to NE in the summer for an extended period.  She does such a great job of making her rounds to see friends when she's "home"...in fact, she and five of her highschool friends have a girls getaway every year!  (That's on my list!!!) 

Our kids know each other only through our yearly playdates, but it is not hard at all for them to pick up where they last left off.  By their level of comfort and less than minimal time necessary to jump right in, you'd think they see each other weekly!  I love it!  Over the years as they've grown, they've of course become much more independent too, playing without us hovering over them. 

Today they all came over for some cool summer fun:

Hmmm...wanna be on her team??  That's what I call ammunition!

Mmm...arm-licking-good!!!

Frozen treats...certainly summertime right??  Right up there with baseball.  Refreshing, especially when a hit offers an instant cooldown:

Batter Up...

STEEE-RIIIKE ONE!!  (I had to include this photo...I think he hit the balloon, but it didn't break!)

Base hit??

From youngest to oldest:  Joe, Ben, (insert my Ben--he'll be bummed he missed today, but probably having way too much fun at Cowboy Grandpa's), Mathilda, Jon, Luke, Josh, Anna, Jakob, Caleb.

And from water balloon baseball to the real thing.  Still alive in the tournament...definitely calls for ice cream doesn't it??