Birthday Love

So I’m 32 now, really.  Not 29 for the fourth time or anything.

I’ve had a lot of great birthday love this week, including PisecoDad taking both Thursday (my actual birthday) and Friday off of work to be able to be with me; my Dad and his wife visiting from Thursday through this morning; eating out a lot and not doing any dishes at all; shopping for just the perfect digital SLR camera for me (arriving Tuesday); watching JediBoy play in his soccer game; and taking a crazy big group picture with some of my oldest friends.  If only poor Dave didn’t need an appendectomy on Wednesday, I could have called this a perfect week!  (Get well soon, Dave, and bear him well, Leigh!)

Here is tonight’s effort from the portrait studio:

In the back row, the guys are (soon-to-be-Uncle) Jared, PisecoDad, Uncle J, Uncle M…

Front row is Aunt R, JediBoy, me, BabyGirl, Cousin C and Aunt T.

Uncle J is the only blood relation - PisecoDad’s cousin.  No, they didn’t grow up in this town - Uncle J moved here when he got a job.  Aunt T and I have known each other since 6th grade, and we didn’t grow up in this town either - she and Uncle M actually moved here for a job too.  (Really, I’m building my commune, but that’s another story.)  Aunt R and I taught together in my days B.C. (before children) and she’s now engaged to s-t-b Uncle Jared.  (Interpret that acronym however you like… he is entering into this crazy brood willingly.)

And for those of you carefully tracking my obsession, this was the first time in a month that we’d gone to the portrait studio!