Cousins

Most of you know that I grew up and still live very close to most of my maternal extended family. Despite the fact that my grandparents had six children, they only have 11 grandchildren. In comparsion to Chad's grandparents, who have over 50 grandchildren, my family is small. I like it that way. Of course I like it because I am use to it, but also I think it makes it easier for us to be close-knit.

I do not have any maternal cousins anywhere close to my age, the closest one being 11 years younger than me. (On my dad's side of the family I have one cousin my age and I haven't seen him for at least 20 years.) Like an only child who wishes he/she had siblings, I often wished I had cousins my age when I saw all the fun my friends had with their cousins. However I like the dynamic of my family. And I also think it's fun that I babysat my cousins and now my cousins babysit my kids.

I love that Ben and Jack have cousins close to their age. Last week we went to ice skating lessons and then swimming at the rec center. During ice skating lessons I watched as Madilynn helped Ben get up after he fell. When we went swimming Brooklynn took care of getting Jack dressed for swimming. Ben went in the men's locker room with Josh (which made me super nervous. I said to Ben, "stay with Josh and don't let anybody touch you.) I was left to just get myself ready. Strange. In the car on the way home, Ben told me that Josh washed his hair for him. Ben can wash his own hair, but I think it's cute that Josh did it for him.

Ben and Jack love their cousins. Of course I love them too. We will see them when we move, it will just take a little more effort. And I'm really going to miss Madilynn yelling out the windows to us whenever we pull up and get out of our car. I am especially going to miss when she yells out her bedroom window at me when she is suppose to be going to sleep.

(Josh, Brooklynn, Madilynn putting on a play for Ben in the rain. June 2009)