Goin' to Pop's

Wow, what a terrific week it has been!  After an amazing weekend with Aunt Julie in town, we all loaded up and drove to Springfield for a quick visit with my brother's family and Pop.  Julie and I rode back together in her car, which is something we hadn't done together since we were teenagers.  There is just nothing better than two best friends locked in a car together for hours, talking and giggling the entire time.  I'm quite sure that Greg and Nicholas were relieved to have us in a separate car and be spared from 4 hours of incessant girl talk.  The whole trip lasted a very short 2 days, but it was totally worth it.  During our visit last December, Nicholas spent a lot of time with Pop and the two of them developed an instant bond.  I can't even count all the times he's asked for his Pop over the last few months so I was very excited to tell him we were finally going back.  His little face just lit up with excitement when we broke the news and it soon became all he could talk about.  And then he said something I will never, ever forget for as long as I live - "Pop is my best friend."  Tears well up in my eyes every time I think of that precious almost-three-year-old voice sweetly proclaiming his adoration for his great-grandfather.  I feel so incredibly lucky when I see the two of them together and I know that I will always hold these memories close.