Family & Home

A few years back I took the long way back to the office after lunch and came across this amazing piece of property: up on a hill overlooking downtown with a waterfall, pond, and park right below it. I couldn’t have picked a better neighborhood; one of my neighbors is a high school classmate. Almost everyone has young children and lots of space to explore in their backyards, it’s in one of the top school districts in the state, and the street ends in a cul-de-sac. My two rescue cats, Tiger and Lilly, are now 15 years old, so they’ve slowed down a bit but haven’t stopped wanting attention and love getting cuddles and pets from my son. 

“Spot” was a game my brother and I made up as kids on the long drive out to Denver to visit our cousins. It involved only a mirror and the sun and I’m not sure there was a winner, but we still had a ton of fun. My brother and I were close growing up and remain so today, although now my role has transformed from older sis to “Aunt Shel” to his four young children. My parents and my brother’s family love our annual trip to the beach in California. Last year during our trip, we all had Thanksgiving dinner together at my son’s biological grandparents’ house, a very special event!

My parents moved to my town a few years back and are a daily influence in my son’s life. He is such an important part of their life that they resist going out of town unless we are already planning to be gone and they can’t wait for another little one to love on and see my family grow!

I consider my son’s biological family my extended family, which adds his two great-grandparents, three grandparents, four aunts, one uncle, and four cousins! We’ve been lucky to meet all of them except one of the great-grandparents and all can’t wait to welcome another family member.