That's what neighbors are for...

We live in a cozy, friendly neighborhood with really nice people.  We are so lucky to have such wonderful neighbors.  It's rare that we walk down the street and don't stop to talk to someone or get invited to someone's home or backyard for a play date.  But our neighbors two-doors-down are especially kind people.   Debbie and Chris have a son, Joey, a year old than Belle and an almost-one-year-old little girl Mina.  Pics of our impromptu playdates with Joey and Mina litter this blog since we moved into our home.

Besides having kids close in age to our girls, Debbie and Chris have eased the transition to suburban life and helped us out in random, neighborly ways.  They refer us to people, like an appliance guy when our dryer broke.  They loan us things, like shovels and a rake when we tried to beautify our yard.  When Belle's school emailed me at 3pm on a Wednesday that Belle needed to bring 2 carrots to school the very next day, Debbie gave me carrots.  When I couldn't get the car to start when I was 3 miles form home at 9:30pm on a Monday, Chris ran over to stay with our sleeping girls so Craig could come rescue me.

So, when Debbie called at 7:30 this morning because her mother was sick and unable to watch little Mina, I was delighted for the opportunity to finally be of service to our kind, generous, helpful neighbors.  Debbie dropped Mina off before 9am and picked her up at around 11am.  In between, Mina came to Belle's school and sat sweetly through our parent-teacher conference, then returned to our house for a play date with Emily.  Watching Mina was a breeze, and I am so glad I could be the helpful neighbor instead of the neighbor-in-need today.  I also learned that my inability to get babies to nap extends beyond my own children: neither Mina nor Emily actually napped during our time together, but both little girls were so sleepy that we spent 10:30-11 snuggling on the couch (I had both girls in my lap, an arm around each and a head on both my shoulders).

I know it won't be long before I call on Debbie and Chris for another favor, but I was delighted to help out this morning and to spend time with little Mina, whom I hope to watch grow up.