{ Idaho: the Family }

Ahhhhhhhh, the family. I always save the best for last, don't I? Never mind, you don't have to answer that question. Just enjoy all the eye candy I'm about to share with you!

One of the things that makes trips back home so special is that it's an eight-hour drive. Eight-ish. Emphasis on -ish if you are under the age of sixty...it's more like seven-plus-ish. Regardless, it's a long trip and we don't make it very often and so it's always really special to see everyone. Especially seeing the babies, who are now kids and toddlers, and meeting the new babies, and loving on the old folks. {I do not mean my parents. I love on them, but I do not classify them as old. Yet.} Also, my dearest sweetest Julie-est cousin Julie lives at the opposite end of Idaho--it would probably take me twelve-ish hours to drive to her house--so when we are able to sync up our visit with hers {her family lives minutes from mine}, it's extra-special-wonderful! How was that for a run-on sentence? You know emotions are high when Nikki doesn't even care about run-on sentences. Enough talking, let's get to the good stuff!

My mama and my daddy with Audrey, my cousin Andrew's youngest daughter {they have four girls under the age of seven}. This photo was taken a few minutes after Dad, holding Charlotte {Julie's baby, a few days younger than Audrey}, declared, "Golly, she weighs two pounds less than a dead horse!"

I learn some kind of new, shocking, and colorful phrase every time I come home. Honest. Usually dead horses and five-month-old baby girls aren't referenced in the same phrase, though.

Me, Charlotte {left} and Audrey. Oh my goodness, are those flowery-feathery-headbands not enough to slay you?! I die every time I look at this picture. The cuteness is not unlike an acute coronary spasm.

Let me sidetrack for a moment to explain a bit of complicated genealogy. Julie, Andrew, and Christy are all my cousins. Julie is Charlotte's mama, and Andrew is Audrey's daddy, so Charlotte and Audrey are cousins. And they are going to be the cutest little old ladies together in 80 years, let me tell you!

How on earth does a two-year-old know how to pose like this?! Emily is the goofiest, clowniest little girl. She's Audrey's littlest big sister.

Emily again, her hair all static-y from jumping on the trampoline

Julie with five-month-old Charlotte. I love the expression on Charlotte's face: "Oh, here they go again, taking pictures of me. It's gonna be a looooong weekend..."

Lottie and Audie. Oh, the kissable squishable chubbiness of those two! I die!

This is my cousin Christy {auntie to all the children you see in this post} and her boyfriend Kevin. The revelation of Kevin as boyfriend was a really big deal. And I really like him! Well done, Christy. He loves Jesus, he's a nice guy, and he's funny. Probably shouldn't let him get away. ;-)

Emily was cold. Therefore, she requested {and was granted} admittance into her mother Corrie's jacket.

Eli is Charlotte's big brother. He's almost two, and anything to do with trucks, heavy equipment, driving, trucks, dirt, trucks, backhoes--did I mention trucks?--this boy loves. You would not believe how hard it was to get him to hold still long enough for a photo.

This smile could melt the coldest heart!

Now, before you see the next photo, I want you to know that I requested permission from the subject's mother to post this photo on the internet. Her response was essentially, "Oh, why not? Everyone who has seen her has seen it--it won't stay in her pants!"


{ Charlotte's crack }

This doesn't even begin to show you all the people with whom we laughed, ate, played games, and made fools of ourselves. I'm kind of afraid blogger will get mad at me if I upload any more pictures this week, though, so I'm going to call this the end of our Idaho adventures for the summer of 2010.