wesley's out of town play date

Last week, Wesley and I ventured to the big city to visit Heather, an old college friend of mine. Heather and I both grew up in Charlotte, played on the same rec basketball team in 7th grade (check out our pic here), went to rival high schools, but didn't know each other until we ended up at the same university where we met! Crazy how that happens. Anyway, we wanted to see each other again and get our young'uns (as they say where I live) together.

Halfway through the day we took a walk to Cailey, Braden, and Kinsey's favorite neighborhood tree. It was pretty cool and we got some great pictures of the kids in the tree. Sorry Cailey, somehow I managed to miss getting a picture of you. I did however make Heather get a picture of this...

If you enlarge this, you'll see that this is a collie. A completely shaved and traumatized collie. As we were passing the house, Cailey exclaimed, "Look, that dog got a haircut!" I turned to look and busted out laughing. We owned a Sheltie (mini-collie) when I was younger and the vet told us NEVER shave shelties or collies. Their hair acts as insulation against the cold and the heat. They also feel embarrassed to be naked as they sometimes "hide" behind their fur coat. So, I laughed at the poor dog. Never mind the fact that as I was laughing (with tears), I was standing directly in front of the house in plain view of the owners who were clearly home. I felt bad, but not as bad as that poor dog. I even made Heather take a picture (she has the zoom lens) for your viewing pleasure.

Here are some other fun pics of the day. Unfortunately, Heather and I neglected to get a picture of ourselves, but you can see what we look like - or what we looked like in 7th grade by clicking on the link above.

Wesley didn't know how to move the car, so he just sat there.

Kinsey and Braden

All Heather's kids were cute, but I could eat Kinsey with a spoon. She is adorable. Cailey is extremely curious and is 5 (and a 1/2 as she corrected me) going on 25. She wanted to be in the middle of all our conversations. Braden is the strong silent type. He's precious and very willing to share his toys.

One funny story from the day happened right after we arrived. We had all congregated in Braden's room and the kids were playing with his train table. I made a comment about Wesley being in heaven (because he loves trains and cars - really anything with wheels) and Cailey glanced at Heather with a scared look on her face. Heather said, "Oh, no Cailey, he's not really in heaven. She just meant that Wesley is really enjoying himself." Classic. Kids are so literal!