Lubbock and the lost cousin

The best part of Lubbock was the cousins! Technically, second cousins. But a cousin is a cousin, right?

I got to see my cousin Nicole for the first time in...ten, twenty years? David thought it was funny that mommies have cousins too. (By the way, it was Nicole's sister Melinda that was going to win a silver medal at the Olympics. To be fair, I'm pretty sure Nicole could do a back hand-spring too.)

The older kids arranged for an Easter egg hunt in the basement for the little ones.

It was while we were all hanging out in the basement after the hunt that I realized I wanted to take Emily, the oldest, home with me. She is super smart, cute, responsible, fun, talented, and positive. Seriously, do you know any seventh graders with a positive attitude?! Well, I've met one. Now, how do I get my own?

Nicole is a wiz when it comes to building Geo-Trax, and David was thrilled to play with the finished product. Occasionally, Ryan, Abigail, and Mary joined him.

David and Mary loved running around with Emily, Tyson, Justin, Ryan, and Abigail. But at some point, David became CONVINCED that among the bunch there was a cousin named Austin. We assumed he had mistaken Justin's name for Austin. But, no, David knew Justin was Justin. He also knew Tyson was Tyson and Ryan was Ryan. He KNEW there was another boy in the house, and his name was Austin. He pressed Nicole to admit she had another son named Austin. And several times he spoke to me about Austin. He also insisted he was real (unlike his three brothers named David who are imaginary). It was all a bit of a mystery. Oh well.

I love these pictures of the little ones.

What cute kids!!

You already know David and Mary.

Ryan is four. He was such a happy little guy with my kids. He put up with David's bossing and helpfully found Mary's lost princess wand. Mary especially enjoyed following Ryan around. Abigail is a few months older than Mary. She is so adorable. ADORABLE! It took all of my self control not to snatch her up and squeeze her tight.

I don't have pictures of Emily, Tyson, and Justin. But you can see them here. What you will not see, however, is Austin the lost cousin. (Nicole, if you ever notice you have a sixth kid in the house, let us know.)