Kissin Cousins

The girls talk a lot about moving out someday.  I don't remember doing this as a kid.  I hope I haven't talked too much about it.  Not like I'm counting down or anything. . . 14 years and a few weeks.  :)  Just kidding!  Of course, Keke is living with her 100 kids here "uh-cuz I could nebber weave you!" We'll see what her husband thinks of that!  Just the other day Sassy commented that she hopes she marries someone with lots of brothers and sisters.  Because--insert sad, pouty voice here--if she marries an only child, her kids will only have one auntie. . .   :(  And my heart broke just a little bit.

I have some guilt about my little family.  I'm sure part of it is my own upbringing.  My parents blessed my kids with a ton of aunties and uncles!  Some is my faith--I'm not a good Catholic if my brood is small... Some is peer pressure.  Every time I see a mom with 2+ kids announcing on Facebook that another is on its way, I feel a little bad.  And it's not that I want more kiddos.  I love our little family and life is SO fun and easy right now.  But I feel like I SHOULD want more kiddos.  Is there something wrong with me if two is enough?  Am I a bad mom if some days two feels like too many?!  How do these moms juggle it all?  Then there are comments like Sassy's.  She's right.  If she marries an only child, her kids will never know what she and Keke know.  And then what if Keke doesn't have kids?  Her kids will never know cousins. :(

And then I remember that R has one sister, and the girls have the best of both worlds.  They have quiet, all-fit-around-one-table Thanksgiving dinners on one side and crazy, good-luck-finding-a-seat on the other.  And it's awesome.  We're so blessed by the family in our lives.

A few pics of family fun from this spring.  (Summer pics to come soon!)

We were thrilled when Aunt Meg, Uncle Chewy and girls came for a weekend!  We took the girls to the circus while the daddies went fishing, and then we hit the school carnival that night.  And somehow I don't think I got a picture of Baby E!  Who isn't a baby anymore. . .she'll be a big sister in January!  Another J cousin!!!   

The very next weekend, Aunt Moni and her boyfriend came.  Yay--more visitors!  We went to the zoo and it was a gorgeous day.  Perfect weather!  "Uncle Turden" will be official next summer when they say "I do" in August.  We're so excited and happy for them!

And then a few weeks later, we got to see the B side of the family for Baby S's baptism.  R and I were honored to be his godparents and the girls got in lots of Baby S time.

It doesn't matter if there's one cousin or one dozen. There's always plenty of love and fun. And I know that whatever families the girls have someday or marry into, as always, it will be just right. Unless Keke truly decides to stay in my house with her 100 kids. Then we might have to talk!

Twelve Years

Somehow the boy I started dating in 1997 has become my husband of twelve years.

May 1997: Not sure what's worse, the hair or the couch

 Sassy: "I have no words." Ha!

1998. Sassy: "You're wearing old lady lipstick and Daddy looks
like he's in a bowling tournament."

2000: Engagement pic with cheesy, awkward hand placement

2001: Wedding

Honeymoon in Key West

2005: Family pics and Sassy in the oven! (Sassy:"Why are
your lips blue?" Apparently I've made some bad lipstick choices...)

2008: Friend's wedding in FL

2011: Returning to FL for our 10 year anniversary.  This shirt looks familiar. . .

I could go on and on about how much my love for this guy has grown over the years (like my fashion sense!) But instead, I wanted to share a fortune that I carry around in my wallet:

I couldn't have said it better myself.

2013: 12th anniversary

                   

Party Animals

So a week before Keke turned four, she started talking about all of her friends coming to her party. Oops. Party? Weren't quite planning on a party. Dang youngest. This is what happens when you see an older sister have parties...So I scrambled and invited a few close friends to the park for pizza and cake. And honestly, it was a lot more fun to catch up with moms I love than trying to entertain a bunch of parents I don't know. :)

My best cake yet. Mainly because there were no tears, ripped bags,
or thrown kitchen gear

Daddy made me a bug box!

New bike!

Sassy decided that she wanted an art party at a local pottery studio. So we sent out homemade invitations:

And we made rainbow cupcakes. Ours weren't as bright (liquid food coloring doesn't work as well) but I found THE frosting recipe using butter extract. Omg. Totally makes the cake!

The seat of honor

Painting the birthday plate

The owner didn't even know about our "theme"
and said she'd never done a plate like this. I love
that she used Sassy's hands.

I think the girls had a blast. I loved sitting and watching them create. And not having to clean up afterwards. :)

It's so much fun to celebrate with them. I think they had great days. I know I did. Ariel looked like Ariel and I found a new frosting recipe in which two of the three ingredients start with "butter." Now that's what I call a party.

Home Sweet Florida

I have to give a huge shout-out to R for planning our vacation.  When we first decided to drive to Florida, we looked at Destin because that's where everyone goes. But then he talked to some guys at work who suggested a little strip of island right off the coast across the Alabama state line. It's supposedly this little "secret" that's less crowded and more family friendly than other beach destinations. And then he found our condo. This was "home" for a week:

I didn't get a picture of the girls' room.  It had a double bed and a daybed. (Plus there was a couch that converted to a bed and two bathrooms...Totally do-able for two families. Who wants to split it with us next time?) We'd never done a condo before and we loved it! We were able to cook a lot of our meals there and there was even a washer and dryer. (We threw everything in our last night and only came home with dirty pajamas!)  And the view alone was worth it:

Three different nights we grilled dinner out on the beach. R went to a fish market one night and got mahi mahi, amber jack, and peel-and-eat shrimp that he had flash steamed in Cajun seasoning. Omg. Heaven. I could have eaten the shrimp all day. Keke agreed. Here's the "shrimp face" that she makes every time she has seafood.

Call me crazy, but sitting on the beach was so much better than going out. Of course, maybe it was because  I wasn't cooking...ha! And then after the sun finally went down, it was time to go crabbing!

This was new to us. Flashlights, buckets, nets...cheap, fun entertainment! You shine your light across the beach, and try to spot a little, whitish-blue sand crab. Then you squeal, "Crab!!!" and run like crazy to catch the poor little thing.

We usually found around five or so, and the little boogers kept climbing out. Which led to more squeals and giggles. :) It was really fun to be out on the beach at dark. And we bought new nets on the way home for next time. 

I was pretty sad to leave after our week was over. I know that vacation isn't reality. There are no bills, no mowing the yard, no scrubbing the toilets. (And only a few loads of laundry!) But it was still tough when this WAS our reality--if only for a week:

When I said I wished we could stay, both girls protested. Sassy's birthday was the next day (she had unopened gifts at home) and Keke whimpered, "But I would miss my gam-maws and aunties!" She's right. I'd hate to be that far from our families.  Sometimes I feel too far only a state away! 

It was still tough to leave, but we got to come home with loads of clean clothes, buckets of seashells, and memories of the two who made it so great:

And we're so blessed that they're our reality.