Flashback

Cousin Mia meeting Elisa for the first time in North Carolina (October 2008)

Cousin Mia meeting Carolina for the first time in New York (September 2011)

Photos really are a window into my life that I can't imagine not having. I love the way they transport you back to a place in time that you almost forgot about. And it's always fun to see exactly how young you really looked. In this case, I'm amazed at how young my niece Mia seemed just three years ago. What a difference from 7 to 10. She is such a young lady now and this time around she's actually holding her cousin like a pro. My sister and Mia made the cross-country trip for Labor Day weekend and we've really enjoyed hanging out around the city with them. Taking a newborn and a preschooler into Manhattan is no small feat, but having the extra hands and the incentive to do so has proved once again that it's worth it to aim high. Yesterday we enjoyed a little playground fun at Washington Square Park before lunch at Otto Pizzeria and the day before was a stroll through Central Park and burgers at Shake Shack. I still remember feeling so overwhelmed and knocked off my feet with Elisa's birth that enjoying this city was near impossible for a good long while. But like most things this time around, I'm snapping back into form so much faster and without all the fatigue I expected to have. It's amazing and I'm thankful that it's made it easier to appreciate this time from the get go. Because if these pictures are any indication, I'll be looking at photos of this weekend's visit a few years from now and wondering how Elisa and Mia could look so baby-faced and Carolina so tiny. Everything with kids seems to be about time--how fast it really goes. And these photos prove it's no lie.