Baby Cousins

I spent part of the weekend in Memphis with my family. We always have a Memorial Day BBQ, and the entire family gets together. This year my cousins were there with their kids. Five babies ages three and a half to about a month old. The four older kids are all about six months apart, so they can all play together.

It amazes me how smart they are, and how much their speech has advanced every time I see them. They are the sweetest kids, and they fight and cry, and it's just adorable. It amazes me to see how each one has this special thing they are more advanced in than the others.

The oldest, a little girl, is so smart. She can remember names and faces, and it's just amazing to me. She always asks me if I'm brining the "apple head", meaning Louie V. Before the age of three she knew that my dog was of the apple head breed. She always remembers all of her cousins names, and she always uses them when she is talking. She will say, "Anne, please, please can we go down by the water, please." It's so cute.

The second oldest is all about sports. At just over three years old he plays basketball just barely missing a shot on a 10 foot goal. He loves to play every sport, he even sits through an entire televised golf tournament. He has a wonderful vocabulary, and knows lots of sports terms. I played basketball with him this weekend and was amazed at how coordinated he was. It's just amazing.

The third oldest, a little boy, is so mechanical. He drivers his motorized tractors all over the yard, weaving through parked cars, and never bumping into anything. He even goes out to the farm with my dad to drive the tractors. Dad lets him steer in the fields, and he does a great job. He is mesmerized by anything that is mechanical or motorized. Last Thanksgiving he snuck up on our cat and scooped him up in his front end loader of his tractor. He was so careful about it as he snuck up on the cat. All the while he had this mischievous look on his face.

The forth oldest is so sweet. He just loves on people when they hold him. He has the best temperament and the sweetest demeanor. He is so smart to be so young. I ask him what has on his shirt this weekend and he said, in the cutest little voice, "alligator". That's a big word for a little boy. He is also very mechanical, he loves to ride on the 4 wheeler and play in the boat.

The youngest, a little boy, is very special. His parents waited a long time to get him. He is very young, just about a month or so, but he is all smiles and he rarely ever cries. He is a joy to be around, and it shows how much his mom and dad love him. They are so happy to finally be parents.

We have two more babies on the way. One will be a girl, the other a boy, more than likely the boy will be born first. I can't wait to have more babies in our family. When I was growing up my cousins and I were so spread out that I didn't really have anyone to play with besides brother chef. So I am really excited about all of these babies being so close in age, it's going to be really fun playing with them all at holidays.

Now just because I'm bragging on my newest sweet cousins does not mean I want babies any time soon. Lets not be ridiculous! I am VERY happy with just Louie V. In fact he is the only thing I plan on being responsible for, for quite a while. I'm just amazed at how smart and funny my little cousins are at such a young age. Good genes I guess!