When I was 6 my family moved out of Utah County and away from every member of my extended family on the maternal side. This side of the family still gets together almost weekly, just sans my immediate family and me.
On the paternal side of the family, for most of my youth my aunts, uncles, and cousins were spread all over the country: California, Washington, Florida, Georgia, Texas, etc. I have one cousin around my age and one aunt that I'm pretty close to; other than that we're awkwardly formal at familial gatherings.
When we lived at Snow, the first time we ever went home to Dani's was the weekend of Thanksgiving Break. Dani's sister, Brooke, was having a birthday party that weekend, and I expected it would be a reasonably small gathering. Not so. Dani dropped me off at the place the party was being held, took off to go to work, and left me with 40 of her extended family members, none of which I had met before. I spent the next three hours blowing up balloons, making friends with Dani's small cousins, and being baffled over the thought of such a close knit extended family. I had no idea that extended families got together for things like this. They see each other constantly; they're at every birthday party, dance recital, kindergarten graduation, and everything in between.
Virtually every time I went home with Dani from then on, or when I visit her now, I get to see the entire family. And I LOVE it. Her little cousins are the cutest girls on the planet. Her aunt Challene is endlessly kind and interested in life's events, and is so easy to talk to. Her brothers and sisters are socially inept, but hilarious. They treat me like I belong there. they put me to work just like the other members of the family, they ask about life, and they include me in their conversations and stories. They invite me on their family outings, whether Dani is available to go or not. I'm more comfortable with Dani's extended family than I am with some of my own. I love it.
This post is for you, Calvert family. Thanks for taking me in. :)
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