Lydi & Lilly

     When Lydia was just over a year old, she met Lilly.  And while some kids that age play side-by-side, somehow these two girls learned early how to play together.  They spent the next 5 years playing princess, and then school, and then secret-society during kindergarten recess. They have a very sweet bond.

     On Tuesday night we got a phone call that Lilly was in the hospital about to go into surgery for an emergency appendectomy.  We were all worried, and Lydia wanted to talk to her friend right then.  She couldn't, but I promised her the very next day we'd go visit.  The surgery ended up going smoothly and Lilly was sore, but doing great. She was even well enough to have strawberry ice cream, much to her mom's chagrin :-).  The next afternoon, we made it out to visit her with a home-made card and a calla-lily flower that Lydia had picked out because of its name.  Lydia was a little shy when we walked in the room, but Lilly happily showed us her belly and where the camera went into her tummy.  Lydia has since been telling everyone about that.  And then, like it was any other day,  they laid on the hospital bed and watched part of a princess movie.  

        I'm glad that we got to see Lilly, and tell her how brave she must have been, and what a great story she has to share now.  I'm glad that Lydia will forever have this memory of visiting her friend because I share a similar memory.  My first friend Cathy had the same emergency appendectomy when I was just a little girl, and I too got to visit her in the hospital.  That experience has always stuck with me as I'm sure this one will stick with Lydia.  Somehow seeing a friend go through something very serious, something very non-kiddish makes you grow up just a bit.  And something I know for sure, these little girls who were once in diapers and sucking on pacis are growing up right before our eyes.