Last Thursday, Mio and I went over to Maryland to meet up with some of my fellow Mama friends in the area and their kids. Together, we went on an outing to Watkins Park there and had a picnic, played on the playground, and then strolled around the farm section. It was great catching up with them, and seeing how much their children have grown… we’ve all known each other since our pre-motherhood days, so it’s really amazing to see each other with our own families now! We were a group of seven parents (including myself) and ten kids, so it was quite rowdy and a whole lot of fun!
We hitched a ride to the park with Lan's kids DoJoon and Seiji
Hat, check. Sunscreen, check. It was such a hot, sunny day!
Seiji and Mio passed out on the ride to the park.
13 month old Mio and 18 month old Seiji playing together at the park.
Maya, Asher, and Aiden eating at the picnic. Many of our friends' kids are quarters, like Mio!
4 month old Aubriana -- so adorable.
Mio is very curious about Aubriana.
Mio playing with the big boys DoJoon, Zenshin, and Seiji... she looks so little compared to them!
Mio got a hug from Kosei... melt melt melt!
After lunch and some playtime on the playground, we trekked over to the farm area of the park.
Looking at the bunnies
So many kids!
Mio looking at the chickens
Mamas and their kids
Beautiful blue peacocks
All of the boys were very interested in the horses and cows.
Mio got right in there with the and even stuck her head into the fenced area...
Looking at the cow.
Distracted by a couple dogs that came by.
A horse came right up to Mio!
Mio was exhausted from all the excitement of playing with so many other kids and seeing all the animals that she napped almost the whole way home! I love that she has so many friends here that she can play with every time we are back in the area. Thank you Lan and Mie for organizing the fun outing! 😀
On Tuesday, Mio had a playdate with my friend Erri’s kids Audrey and Brennan. She had so much fun playing with older kids, and they took such good care of her while Erri and I caught up! I’ll let the cute photos speak for themselves…
4 year old Audrey and 18 month old Brennan
13 month old Mio
Berry Cute indeed!
The diaper butt looks oh-so-cute in baby jeggings.
I remember when Audrey was just younger than Mio at my wedding. How time flies!
After enjoying a delicious yakisoba lunch that Erri cooked, we headed over to the nearby park to play. It was so humid that day!
Audrey took such good care of Mio! ã„ã„ãŠå§‰ã¡ã‚ƒã‚“ã ã〜。
Brennan walking around on the playground.
The kids got pretty sweaty from playing in the playground, so we threw them all in the bathtub together. It was pretty stinkin’ adorable…
Three's company... such a cute moment!!! 三人ã§ãŠé¢¨å‘‚タイム♪
Audrey holding Mio close... heartmelt!
Audrey washed Mio's hair for her and rinsed her off! She's used to being a good big sister to Brennan, so she was really great with Mio. 見ã¦ã¦å¾®ç¬‘ã¾ã—ã‹ã£ãŸã€‚（＾＾）
Out of the bath, Mio and Brennan both took naps while us Mommies chatted, but they eventually woke up for some more playtime…
I'm pretty sure I squealed when I took this picture. é ã¨é ã‚’ãã£ã¤ã‘ã¦éŠã‚“ã§ã‚‹äºŒäººã€ã‹ã‚ã„ã™ãŽã‚‹ï¼
We ended up staying there for over seven hours! Thank you Erri for lunch and dinner, and for having us over for such a fun (and adorable) playdate! :DÂ It’s incredible to think that Erri and I met when we were only five years old, around Audrey’s current age. We’ve known each other for 24 years, and it’s really amazing to see how far we’ve both come! I would have never imagined us both being Mamas and having playdates together for our children. I’m so thankful for her years (now decades!) of continued friendship, and look forward to many more memories together. ♥
We don’t have stairs at our home back in California, but the rooms we’re staying in at my parents’ house is on the second floor. Since the first day we got to Virginia, Mio has been a pro at climbing the stairs, despite not having had any stairs to practice on in the past. I guess all the table-climbing made her a natural at tackling stairs… Of course, I always hover from behind to spot her and make sure she doesn’t tumble down. Here’s a video I took! (In retrospect, it probably would have been better to have it taken from the front, so you could see her face, but instead you get plenty of baby butt footage. Oh well… next time!)
