Uncle Brian and Josiah working on a puzzle. overheard:"Boy, if you snatch a piece out of my hand one more time I'm a gonna thump you..."
Caitlin helped make Cookie Pizza out of the Junior Kids cookbook my Mom gave Caleb recently. Here she dutifully smiles for Uncle John's camera but keeps focused on perfect marshmallow placement.
"Do you spend time with your family? Good. Because a man that doesn't spend time with his family can never be a real man." Marlon Brando as "The Godfather"
One of the things I love about my brother and his wife is how comfortable they are just "hanging out". When they drive 2 hours from Portland to visit there is rarely a plan. We eat, we talk, take a walk, do a puzzle, jump on the trampoline, tell stories, razz each other a bit, watch basketball, eat some more.
Yesterday they drove down, since Brian has to work Thanksgiving-(warning-little rant inserted here-why can't television stations simply CLOSE on major holidays so people would be forced to give up the big black box for 24 hours and then the station employees could stay with their families!?!) John took the afternoon off and we had a good long stretch of family fun. When I stop to consider how amazing that is? how God, so generous in His giving, planned that my brother and I, who spent the first 18 years of life together as just-us-two are now, by God's grace, increased to NINE. How rare and amazing it is that we really like the others spouse and adore each others kids? I'm grateful, yet greedy. I wish ALL my family lived nearby-my sisters and their kids, John's cousins, our parents. Good friends count as family too, so while dreaming let's add them in there too so Brenda's hippy commune is complete. I hate saying goodbye and love the chaos of running children, the laughter and noise of all of us together...I think my heart is just ready for that eternal reality of no separation, no goodbyes. "In my Fathers House are many rooms..." And being the Author of all good things, I imagine there is also a great big kitchen, and "a big, big yard...where we can play football..."
1 comment:
When you hear Brenda talk about her brother, you only get a glimpse of the reality of their connection. I don't believe there is another adult to either of them, that makes the other laugh so much (about so little, heh, heh). Sometimes they break out in a little song (Classic Country) that they remember their Dad listening to when they were little. Sometimes they just laugh because they have the identical sense of humor. (I truly believe this!) When I asked Brian (while we were dating) who his best friend was and he replied, "Brenda," I started to believe I could be with this guy the rest of my life. When I see them together, I get it.
I love hanging out with them too because it's always easy. I'm happy to be a part of this family of 9. It's amazing.
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