Mindy & Holly’s pool {the gift of growing up}

Growing up my sister and I spent most of our elementary school summers at Mindy and Holly’s pool. Their mom was (and is) one of my mom’s best friends. Their family had two girls. Our family had two girls. We were all the same ages and had so much fun together. Some of my fondest summer memories took place in their huge pool surrounded by soft grass and a strawberry patch off one end.

A couple times a summer my extended family gathers back at that pool. One of my favorite aspects of still living where I grew up is watching the passage of time in the setting of familiar places. My present is happening in the same places as my past – this day to day reality is so good for my perspective on what I value most. I spent a lot of time chasing my nephew around the pool with my camera. Watching him brings back countless memories of my guys when they were toddlers around the same pool. These days they wrestle in the pool instead of debating jumping in and their little squeals have been replaced with loud yells and laughs. My eyes would bounce from my nephew to my guys and I just felt so grateful for the chance to watch them grow up. 

What a gift to see my kids, nieces and nephew laughing in the same water I once did with Lesley, Mindy and Holly. What a gift it is to grow up and watch kids grow up too!