Visit from Stephanie, Nick and Andrew

On Wednesday evening, Stephanie, Nick and Andrew came into town. They haven't been to Kalamazoo in a long time, so they stopped by K's campus to check out the new Hicks Center and library, and then they came over to our house to meet Nathan! Nathan was napping when they arrived, but he eventually woke up in time to show off his new flirting skills.

I was amazed at how much Andrew has grown! I still think of him as a little guy, but he is a confident, friendly and funny 12-year-old; time flies!! He was absolutely wonderful with Nathan; so gentle with him and genuinely interested in interacting with him. Nathan thought Andrew was awesome--he loves those big kids!

After hanging out all together, Nick and Andrew headed off for boys' dinner at the Union, Todd put Nathan to bed, and Stephanie and I went out for sushi. It was so great to have some one-on-one time with Steph. She is such a good friend, and we are both awful at keeping in touch with each other, so it was really reassuring how easily we fell back into having great conversations. Now that I am a mom, it has added such an amazing element to my relationship with my friends who are also mothers. I have an entirely new appreciation for them as mothers, as women and as people. So cool!

The Miller-VanDerSchie clan meets Nathan

Andrew and Nathan


Nathan wearing Andrew's sweet new headphones--he wasn't sure what to think about them!