Family

Try explaining the concept of FAMILY in terms that an almost three year old can grasp.  Seriously, try it.  It's very difficult even with a pretty bright 34 month old boy.  With Mike as an only child and me with just one sister, our family is fairly small and manageable for the ever-expanding mind of little Thomas.   He keeps the two Nanas and the two Papas straight by assigning them pet names.  We have a decent sized extended family that he's able to keep in check because we see them in small numbers.  Holidays with one great aunt, trips to Oklahoma to see the other great aunts and a great uncle and a couple of cousins, and now he has added another set of great aunt, uncle and cousins to his working memory.  He's met plenty of family up until this point, so that is nothing new.  What is new is that on a recent trip to Nana Wuff's house (VanDusens' house), he asked about our friends.  "Where is our friends?"  With our soon-to-be expanding immediate family, it seemed like a good time to explain the term family.  I told him, "They aren't friends, Thomas, they're family."

These friends that Mama calls family started off on the right foot by appealing to Thomas' sweet tooth.  Together with Mama's Aunt Barb and her kids, we decorated cookies that Nana made.

Thomas giving frosting lessons to Barb, Douglas, Nana and Sara

Thomas' second cousins, Douglas and Sara, also scored major points for "Putting our feet in a water."  The lake was likely 60 degrees and must've been cold for the Floridians, but they unselfishly humored Thomas.

On the way up to Lake George, Thomas declared, "I think our need a go out in a boat in a water."  Anything that begins with, "I think our need..." means that Thomas will not forget what he thinks we NEED to do.  Barb happily took Thomas out for a very early morning boat ride! 

Thomas helps paddle

And off they go!

Thomas also had the typical fun with Papa's tools.  This time, finding the air compressor and seed spreader yielded lots of fun and entertainment.

Air compressor as funny noise maker and skin jiggler,

Air compressor as hair styling tool,

Air compressor as weapon?

Pushing the spreader all over the yard

As if all this fun weren't enough, Thomas had many more adventures to go on!  He made a trip to the nearby park where he played on the playground, watched an all-star tennis match (between Mama and her cousins), and met a bunch of kids.

With a little help from Douglas

Climbing up to see who is at the top

Thomas sits waaaaay in on the most dangerous piece of equipment on the playground

He also took some dangerous rides and some risky shots at the arcade in LG Village.

"Miter cycle" lessons from Douglas (A.K.A. Jane)

Yee haw!

Taking shots with Nana in the shooting gallery

Despite being 33 weeks pregnant, Mama took on (and beat) Douglas, Nana and a wandering Thomas in Skeeball.

On the last day there, Barb and Nana brought Thomas on an exciting excursion to the Aviation Mall.  While it does not belong on the hit list for most tourists, it was absolutely perfect for Thomas.  The little mall had all of his favorite things: a playground (indoor), Auntie Anne's Hot Pretzels, and a super store.

Check out the climber all the way in the back!

A friend on the ice cream truck

Trying out baseball gear at Target

At the end of each day, before bed, I ask Thomas the same question: "Did you have a good day, Buddy?"  On the last night in Lake George, Thomas replied, "I had a fun with our family."  Fun indeed, Little Buddy.  Fun indeed.

Cousins

Family