the cousins, part 1

Currently, the little one has 5 cousins.  4 on my side and 1 on his pops side.  The little one loves his cousins - even though he doesn't get to see them all of the time.  He also has 3 other "cousins", who we love just the same!

We are so blessed to have so many family members.  Brothers, sisters, parents, grandparents, cousins - friends.

As the eldest of 9, I grew up knowing that family is life.  Many of my friends couldn't wait to get out of the house, to go do "something", to be away from their family.  Although, I loved being out of the house, I always had others with me.  My siblings provided me guaranteed friends.  Friends that I could laugh with, fight with, play with - love.

When I went away to college, my siblings went with me.  Homeschooling has its advantages.  I could take a brother or sister (or 2-3) and keep them with me for a week of so.  We would go to class together, the park together, eat together, enjoy life together.  Now as they are all growing up, it is harder.  Everyone is moving to their own life.  Their lives are calling them to different parts of the world, but thankfully we live in an age that allows us to stay connected - even when across the globe.

My husband is still getting used to this "closeness" that large families provide.  At times, I think he believes that we have all fallen off our rockers, but thankfully, he loves us - crazy and all.

My prayer is that as my little one grows up, that he will experience this same closeness that only a family can bring.  Hopefully he will have more siblings, maybe from other parts of the world - to laugh with, play with, fight with and love.

J and G's (my bother & his wife)  kiddos:

and then, just for fun, 

pictures of the little one.

just in case you forgot how cute he is...

blessings from this weekend:

homeopathic teething tablets - we lovingly refer to them as "baby crack"  (318)

the hugs and cuddles that come along with the pain of teething  (319)

grins with only lower teeth - this won't be around for much longer (320)

tire warranties at Discount Tire - without them, we might not be able to drive. (321)

skype - without it I would go through sister withdrawl (322)

sun shining through dark, grey clouds (323)

naps in the middle of the day (324)

beautiful colors in the produce department at Whole Foods (325)

crawling (326)

baby kisses (327)

baby laughs (328)