Once upon a time, Tonya and I were elementary school teachers working at the same school in Dallas. In fact, the first time I met her, she was in my second grade classroom setting up the computer (yes, one sad little computer was all the technology we had back then) in her role as the Technology Specialist. After being friends for a couple of years, we were both due with our first children in the spring of 2003. Bonding over morning sickness, the exhaustion of teaching while pregnant, and our blossoming bellies, our friendship grew along with our waistlines. We even took water aerobics togethers, bouncing around the pool and laughing at ourselves. As such, we like to say that Jack and Abby have been friends since they were in utero. They ended up being born six weeks apart and spent many a day together in their early years.
After our second children were born - this time six months apart, instead of weeks - my family moved to Charlottesville and a few years later, their family moved to Asheville, NC. We don't see each other as often as we'd like, and the challenges and responsibilities of motherhood, careers, marriage, and life in general keep us busy. But is always a joy to reconnect and laugh and see those kids who we've known since infancy growing into boys and girls and young men and women. I hope that they too will find friends with whom they can watch their families grow alongside.
