New Friends, Old Friends

These are our Swedish friends Joel and Lydia. We got to know them last year while they were temporarily living in Durham. Now they are back in Sweden and living in a postcard-perfect country house just outside the town of Linkoping. Recently we got to spend a few amazing days hanging out with them, eating delectable home-cooked meals, and exploring the Swedish countryside (more on that later).

First, you need to meet their cute little offspring, Etty.

When we knew Joel and Lydia in Durham either one or both of us were pregnant. We were excited to meet one another's little girls and introduce them to each other.

They were instant friends.

Etty was quite generous with her toys.

Penelope encouraged Etty in her pursuit to crawl.

Penelope invited Etty over to hang out in her crib.

Etty was more interested in Penelope's pacifier.

The tricky thing about visiting Etty was keeping Penelope out of trouble around Etty's house. There were many a "no-no" lurking around the rooms. Take, for instance, the wood-burning stove. Learning by trial and error just didn't seem appropriate in this case.

Penelope sure kept us on our toes as we followed her from room to room. Keeping Penelope out of trouble was a full-tme job.

Meanwhile, Etty was completely content watching the world go by from her perch.

One evening we found the two of them in the bathtub.

Looks like someone was up to no good.

Caught red-handed.

Not to worry. They were back on good terms in no time.

Thanks for all the fun times Etty!

BFF

Love, Penelope