California Goodbyes

Two days to go. We’ve been saying our goodbyes; Andrew to his coworkers on Friday, me to a couple of mom-friends on Thursday; the farmer’s market on Sunday; and, Saturday, to the Clarks.

Well, three of the Clarks; Beth and Rowan were at a wedding in Pennsylvania. But Nate, Henry, and Elena came up for lunch and World Cup viewing, one final afternoon together. Well, final for the West Coast, anyway. We know we’ll see them again once they move back to Pittsburgh (in 458 or so days). Still, it’s sad to say goodbye. We all moved to NorCal at roughly the same time, and we’ve been going out to lunch and journeying to San Francisco and watching sports and playing with kids together for three years now. And our group has grown—first it was four adults and two babies; then four adults and two toddlers; then four adults, two toddlers, and a newborn; and, finally, four adults, two toddlers, a baby, and another newborn. Our lunches out have gotten logistically complex, with high chairs and car seats and slings and carefully timed feedings and naps and trips to the bathroom, but this is all part of what makes them fun. It was a lucky, lucky thing to have such friends fortuitously move to the same random part of California that we did. These past three years would have been a lot less fun, and less bearable, without them. But we’re looking forward to more lunches (accompanied by fall foliage and snow, perhaps!) once they join us back East.

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