Finally Together

It's been at least  ten years since I've seen my cousin Carrie Beth (sitting next to mom).  That's one of her two children in the picture, five-year old Jacob.  He's a real pistol.  It's the first time seeing her kids and also meeting her husband, Rod, who I adore.  He's wonderful.  An Iraq war vet who has agreed to disagree with me on a bunch of issues after really interesting conversarions.  He's really funny and charming, too.  I'll put a photo of him in the extras.

Also in this shot, from the middle are my sisters-in-law.  Lore' traveled with us from Arizona.  She has a home in Phoenix but resides in New Mexico.  Colleen was our host in my home town of Hamburg, New York.  My niece Caitlin is sitting on her mother's lap. We're sitting on the deck of their pool.

The weather has been awesome so far.  Warm and sunny and not overwhelmingly humid, as it can sometimes get.  Tomorrow is my mom's "cousins' reunion." 

We are having to deal with a malfunctioning oxygen concentrator, which has caused me ro not sleep tonight because I need to tend to it every few minutes to assure she gets a continuous flow of O2.  A new one is being shipped to us and is arriving tomorrow.  We must get it in time to leave for the reunion.  After all, that was the entire reason for the trip.  They will learn what holy hell really is if it isn't.

PS  In the extra of Jacob, that's not his tongue, it's a hot dog!  I said he was a pistol!