A sweet little voice on the phone

Last Friday I got a call at work. There was this sweet little voice on the other end asking, "Valoree, can Hudson come spend the night with me?" It was my niece Sydney and it was the sweetest thing ever. After talking to Caroline and making sure she was up for it, of course I said SURE! Richard and I decided it would be a great opportunity for us to have a much needed date night. We were going to a 5:20 movie so we were just going to leave Chandler at home but just as we were about to leave, one of his friends called and invited him to spend the night. So...it all worked out great and we were able to have a date without getting a babysitter. We went to see the Bourne Ultimatum which was great by the way! After the movie we grabbed something to eat at Zaxby's and were home by 8:15. How sad is that? We had a great time and it was good to just spend some time with each other. It was just nice to go to bed when I wanted to and sleep late. We got up and ate IHOP the next morning.
I was able to partially repay the favor by watching Caroline's kids for a couple of hours the next day so she could go shopping. I still think I owe her though! Not quite an even trade :)
Chandler really does have some great friends and I hope it remains that way as he gets older. He started middle school last week and is liking it so far. I can't believe he's so grown. I think back to when I was in the 6th grade and what I knew and how old I thought I was and it's really scary. I guess that's what prayers are for, right? Anyway...I am so thankful for the great family and friends that we are blessed to have! I can't imagine life without them.