We are family, I got all my cousins (well two of them) with me

It is extremely hard to find someone on my mom's side of the family that is not F-U-N (must be spelled for proper emphasis).  My mom's mom's side of the family is from Louisiana.  They are all full of life, laugh, and just down right hilarious.  That side of the family tree is all close and really do a great job of staying connected and seeing one another.  This past weekend, we had our pretty much annual reunion with a couple of favorite cousins.

Mom, Donna, and Jude are all first cousins.  So, that makes them my second cousins?  Not sure how all of that works.  But anyway, I digress.  We went on several family vacations with Donna and family (who now live in California).  Donna has the best laugh and is amazingly laidback.  She has the most beautiful kids, who are now a sophomore in college and senior in high school - SCARY!  Donna's dad, Uncle Donald, was, and is, one of the most inspiring and influential men in my life.  Absolutely, another grandfather.  Jude is just honestly, hands down, one of the best guys you'll ever meet on the planet.  Words cannot even begin to describe him.  His nieces (my third cousins??  genealogical help please!) are close to my age so I call him, what they do, Uncle Jude.  With us all having kids, he has decided to go by Jude, the Uncle or Uncle Jude, the Great.

Donna and Jude drove to Palestine so that we could all get together.  We were only able to stay for the day, so it felt too short.  But it was such a treat to see them.

Davis and I with Uncle Jude, the Great

Picture time with Donna (Uncle Jude thought the Memories and bouquet were a must for the picture :) )

They are so great about making the rounds to see family.  And they really remind and inspire me to get out and do the same.  Donna, Jude - be expecting some house calls from the Greens soon!

Just because there is a gate...

Doesn't mean that I won't try to get through!

Maybe if I pull really hard

Greats

I am blessed to still have three of my grandparents still with us, and just down the road!  So, Davis and I made the drive to Gilmer to see two of them.

First stop was at Nana's house.  Nana is the most amazing grandmother.  She was the grandmother that was at every recital, play, pep rally, you name it.  I cherish the memories of spending weeks (literally) in the summer at her house doing all kinds of fun and creative things.  You were sure to have fun, and to learn something.  And of course, you could eat all of the things that your mom would not (like icing for breakfast).  So, true to form, as soon as we got to her house, Nana had tons of little toys out for Davis and even pulled out a little desk for him to try out. 

Nana and Poppey show Davis a desk that is just his size

After Nana's house, we headed to Papa's.  Papa always has a nickname for everyone (mine is Froggie), has the funniest sense of humor, and has been known to let grandchildren paint his toenails!  Papa is definitely a man that loves babies!  He could not wait to get his hands on Davis and Davis loved him.  He sat in his lap for about 15 minutes, which we know in toddler world is about two hours.  Papa also has puppies, which is a ton of entertainment!

Sweet Papa and Davis

Such sweet times!  I am so thankful that Davis has so many "great" great-grandparents!

Friday/Funday

Jared had the day off on Friday and was insistent that I take some time for myself (eek, have I been looking frazzled???).  My mom and Fairy were going to Canton, so I decided to take my opportunity to go baby-free, despite the heat.

We had a really good time, but of course you cannot help yourself when you are with the two that I was with.  Mom and Fairy (my best friend's mom who is also my mom's best friend, and the wife of my dad's best friend - you get the picture, we are all very close) are always good for laughs.  Seriously, those two cut up more than any other two ladies you'll ever see.  They are also really good at decorating houses.  So, you are sure to pick up some good ideas and tips when you're shopping with them.  It was insanely hot, but what a fun day!

And what about the boys?  Davis was having so much fun with Daddy that he only slept a total of 45 min (his usual is about 2.5/3 hours). 

Friday was FUN-day for the Greens!

Curled up with a good book

Davis rediscovered the Bumbo chair and decided what else goes with a nice seat, but a good book!

(Interesting because he did not sit in it much as an infant, he threw up almost every time we got in it.  Glad we're getting some use out of it)

Where's your belly?

There it is!

24 Hours With Friends

Davis and I took the opportunity to go see the Gurgs when Jared had an early morning meeting in Dallas scheduled on Monday. 

We headed out after Davis' nap on Sunday afternoon and made it to the Gurg hotel around 4.  The kids are so cute together.  It takes a few minutes of shyness before they both start chasing each other around.  This was the first time for them to play together with them both being walkers, so there was a lot of running around the house going on.

Anna found Davis!  Davis loves climbing in this cabinet in their family room

The boys kept the kiddos Sunday night while I went to dinner with Carroll and her sweet friend Rebecca. It was so nice to have a girls' dinner.

Monday morning, Davis and I tagged along with Gurg girls to their Little Gym class.  We had never been to an organized class like this, but it was SO much fun!  I wish we had a place like this in Tyler.  We sang songs, did little exercises, and basically, watched the kids run around in a padded room where they pretty much cannot possibly get hurt.  Davis' face was priceless.  He loved it!  Unfortunately, I did not get many of those priceless smiles in pictures.

We left about 4:00 on Tuesday, just about 24 hours after we got there.  While it is always too short of a trip,  we loved every minute!