I have a lot of cousins in Omaha. My cousins in Omaha have a lot of kids. Therefore, Annalie has a lot of cousins in Omaha! Yeah, most of them are second cousins or first cousins once-removed, but we just call ‘em cousins. Most people don’t even know the difference between a second cousin and a first cousin twice-removed anyway. (I do. I will bore you to death with the explanation if you want.)

Annalie is blessed with quite a few cousins close to her in age. Not only cousins close to her in age…but several girl cousins close to her in age! That’s not something I ever had. I used to be jealous of my friend Kara because her cousin Kelly was only a few months older than she was, and they were really close friends as well as relatives.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved my boy cousins too. And I’ve always been close to my cousin Tressa, even though she’s eight years older than I am. I’ve often described her as the closest thing I have to a big sister, because that’s what she is. She’s even one of Annalie’s godparents.

It’s just fun for Annalie to have girl cousins close to her in age. I hope she manages to stay close to them as they all grow up, and that they stay good friends. I’m doing my part by making sure she gets to spend time with as many cousins as possible whenever we go to Omaha.

Note that one of Annalie’s girl cousins close to her in age, Madison, isn’t pictured because while we were in Omaha her mom, my cousin Amanda, gave birth to Madison’s little sister Makenzie a few weeks prematurely. So they were busy and we didn’t get the chance to visit them this time, but next time we’ll get to see them AND meet our newest cousin. And hey, did I mention that my brother and his fiancee are expecting a baby GIRL in November? Bring on the pink!