we miss him and them already

this was a weekend of goodbyes.

ben came to town for several days which was beyond wonderful.  i didn't expect to be so emotional when i saw him but the tears were flowing.   it had been a long long time.  he was smitten over the girls and couldn't take his eyes off caroline.  when she first saw him, she studied his face intensely and looked him over with her mouth half ajar.  it didn't take long for her to show off all her tricks and feel completely comfortable.  kinsley and hallie craved his attention.  they only wanted him to buckle the car seats.  him to sit by at meals.  him to do bedtime.  so on and so on.  they were just so happy.  

he is now on a plane headed back to charlotte.  10 days until he returns to bring us with him.  it was a sad goodbye indeed.

we also got to bottle up some time with our friends.  it was the last time we will see most of them.   it is hard to even type those words.  i cried the whole way home and said profound things like, "this is stupid." or "it's just sad."  

i have been immeasurably blessed with amazing friends.  i love their kids and thankful that their husbands have been perfect matches for my husband.  these kinds of bonds can't be duplicated.  sorry charlotte folks, you can't possibly hold a candle to our colorado peeps.  stay tuned for pics of our girls trip to charlotte...coming fall 2011.

here are the babies that match the above picture:

caroline will miss her friends.

i love the way isla and caroline are chatting in this picture.  

kinsley and hallie will miss their friends too.

 
kinsley asked if this was the last time she would ever see mason.

it was sad.  no way around it.   plain old sad.