my best friend’s daughter, is my daughter’s best friend

I hope you have experienced one of those extraordinary gatherings, with friends or family, that when you head your separate ways, you find yourself mentally reliving snippets of it. Where you catch yourself smiling absently, daydreaming about the fun?

oui, oui, oui all the way home!

In 1992, my girlfriend, Emily, and I had babies 10 weeks apart. And those two little babies grew up together, and shared many life experiences together.

20 years ago!

Time and distance have made gatherings less frequent, but time & distance gave this particular mother-daughter weekend more impact.

Get this: I even made a spreadsheet for the four day visit. Carli could’ve had all the plans outlined in her head and on her phone app  – me, I need a spreadsheet.

Anyway, impact, is not necessarily a good thing. No, Sarah did not get injured. But, as hard as this may be to believe, I guess we embarrass our daughters. Usually without even trying. I adore to see them comfort each other when mortified, but puzzle why they find Emily’s Rumba embarrassing?? There was speculation if they would ditch us or not. Pleasantly, they did not. It was a whirlwind visit: we explored each of the Kingdoms, saw the best shows they offered, we toured Epcot by tasting and sipping our way from one border to another.

Blatant Photo Bomb

Photo Bomb Target

If there were lines to wait in, we played “Heads Up” – a form of a charades. Or, we played a twist on the game “20 Questions”. We played a humming game, which was incredibly difficult, though the rules are simple: just hum a random song that is given to you, and the other people try to guess it. Try humming “You Ain’t Nothin But a Hound Dog”. Silly games allowed me to put my guard down, and focus on the immediate moment. I loved it!

The finale was a music and dinner show at Disney World’s own campground. With 8:30pm dinner reservations, our butts were dragging. We wondered if we could make it through. That is, everyone except Carli. She was filled with anxious excitement. Once inside, and the curtains opened, those entertainers woke us up! In a matter of minutes we were foot stomping, hand clapping, cheering and singing along. The waiters were attentive; they even presented our dinner timed to the music of the show. Look at these smiles:

I could go on and on – I have 167 photos to prove it! But the point is simple, find your special humans to connect with, and make some smiles together. Those memories can give you strength later on. Heck! You should see my strength now. As I reach for a tissue...sniff.