Good friends tell you "pish-posh, no worries" when you burn the lasagna. Real, great, irreplaceable friends tell you they prefer the burnt lasagna, in fact, they ask beg their Italian nonnies to scorch the top layer just as you have done! The latter kind of friends probably even saw you walk away when there were 4 minutes left on the oven timer WHICH IS HALF A CENTURY IN LASAGNA YEARS and you thought it still needed to crisp some more and they said nothing. Then they gobble it up without flinching, and change the subject to Celebrity Haircuts, which is possibly the only category in Jeopardy! you will ever sweep. We had just such friends - the real, great, irreplaceable kind - visit this past weekend. Jose and Maria are friends that another dear friend lent me. Selfish person that I am, I decided to not give them back but rather to keep them and treasure them and now they have a Princess Gabriela who is not only my friend but the friend of Baby Girl, as well. In Baby Land, that means that Princess Gabriela tolerates head to kneecap contact, which is good since that is the only kind Baby Girl knows how to make. Whenever Baby Girl sees something moving that possesses two legs, she immediately wants to rub her head on its knee, and lick it like a postage stamp. Out of the drooly mouths of babes.

I am looking forward to moving Baby Girl into her dorm room with Princess Gabriela in 2025. Until then, I shall lament that these friends do not live closer.