Fun with Friends

Alec, Kylie, Kristi and Ian - May 2011

Each month our church hosts a "Kids' Club" at a local cancha near the home of Jon and Kim Spink, our missionary colleagues here in Iquique. The Spinks are in charge of this special ministry and do a wonderful job of providing fun and games as well as Scriptural truths to the children who attend. They also oversee the teens who are doing a fantastic job this year with dramas for the kids.

While our older three join the rest of their friends for a fun time at the club, my responsibility is to oversee our younger two along with the Spinks' youngest three for a few hours. Last year we gathered at our house but this year we've decided to hang out at theirs! Ian and Alec look forward to this visit with great expectation.

Kristi and Kylie Spink are very close in age to our little boys and the combined five youngest Spink/Garcia kids make up the bulk of the toddler department at church. So ever since their first meeting in the swimming pool when the boys arrived home last year, these MK "cousins" have spent lots of time together and have become great buddies!

Little Joseph Spink (whose entry into the world I had the privilege to witness firsthand as his mom's "birth translator" - so cool!) tips the scales in favor of the boys when the gang gets together. Ian and Alec are kind of intrigued by little "Jo-Jo" and his antics. I thought the picture above was so cute of the three boys, especially the way Alec is patting a smiling Joe on the head as if giving him a stamp of approval!

Of course, as in any friendship there are moments of disagreement and this past visit was no exception. Kristi, who usually insists that "Ian is my best friend" and "Alec is your best friend" to her sister Kylie, on this occasion rejected her supposed best buddy over a little case of halitosis. Yes, bad breath. Apparently she was convinced Ian had stinky breath and did not want him anywhere near her! He was not about to be deterred, however, and insisted on trying to squeeze next to Kristi for a picture. The shot above was the result. :)

Never one to leave all the drama to the girls, having been continually rejected Ian started to cry and then little Joe came to his rescue. I snapped a picture as Joe was curiously pointing to the tear rolling down Ian's cheek. It was just so cute! Fortunately the friends eventually reconnected and Ian's diaper (which I believe was the true culprit of the smell) was changed, and all was once again well in Toddler World. (However, Ian has not forgotten the incident because when he saw me uploading these pictures he loudly insisted, "Ian NOT reek!" Too funny.)

Definitely there is never a dull moment with these five around. We'll see what fun adventures next month holds!