So, I’ll admit that in the past, I have disparaged the current practice of scheduling so many play dates between children.  It is so different from my own childhood experience when we had the run of the neighborhood and dozens of kids on our same street. With Pete, I have re-visited the concept.  Since Pete is an only and I have seen that parental play does not measure up to dog-play, I have been scheduling play dates for Pete.  His favorite playmate is Chase Ward. Luckily, Skip and I also enjoy visiting with the Wards and so the dates are all around fun.

There is something so satisfying about watching the two guys running full out across the yard in some mysterious game that they both seem to play masterfully. No toys, no parents needed.  They flop down for a break in perfect rhythm, panting – then suddenly both jump up and resume. How do they do that?

I tried to grab an action shot, but they move so fast I couldn’t get them both in the frame.  So, instead, I have a shot of them in “after glow.”