We’ve been busy having fun lately, spending time with friends and family. My (much-younger) brother Michael has been home from University of Maryland for winter break, and the kids have loved having him around. He is everything that a child could want in an uncle: cool, goofy, and willing to get down and do whatever it is they want to do, whether it’s reading book after book after book, or chasing them around the house while they shriek with exhilaration, or playing repetitive games of War, or building elaborate block towers. I honestly didn’t expect him to be an uncle of this variety. I wouldn’t have been offended if my nineteen-year-old brother said a brief hello and doled out high-fives to my kids before heading out the door to meet up with his peers. The kids adore him, and he has earned their adoration.

Uncle Michael patiently reading a circuitous choose-your-own-ending version of The Three Little Pigs with his just-as-patient and kind girlfriend looking on
On Martin Luther King Day we celebrated by having a dinner with our cousins Jim and Carol and their two boys, M and D. The last time we saw them, it was right after D came home from Ethiopia. His personality has really come out, and he’s a hilariously animated and strong-willed little guy. Bo and Sula are really into babies and younger kids and they thought D was fascinating and silly. Bo is just as into “big” kids, so he thought cousin M was the bomb. The kids had a blast together, and I’m so hapy that they’ll be able to grow up with cousins who are close in age that share so much in common.
On a friends (but with a bit of family thrown in for good measure- explanation below!) note, Bo had two playdates with buddies from preschool this past week. Ever since Dawit started having friends over last year, Bo has been begging us to have his friends over. He had his first big-kid playdate when his friend D.M. came over a few months ago sans Mom, and it went well for the first hour or so, until D.M. casually mentioned his car collection. Apparently he has “the most cars in the world.” Or something like that. Bo was devastated, believing his own collection to surpass any other (and he is probably right!). Bo couldn’t really recoup, and I was left trying to sooth his wounded soul while trying to occupy his friend. This week we gave it another go, and Bo did much better. He has really bonded with a group of several little boys in his preschool class, and refers constantly to the “cool guys” (HIS words, believe it or not). It’s hilarious when Bo tells us that “D.M. doesn’t take naps anymore; he just rests on the couch with his Mom” or wonders aloud if “M.B. rinses with pink stuff (fluoride) after flossing his teeth.” He casually drops the phrase “best friend” when he talks about what he and D.M. have been up to at preschool.
The oddest thing happened after this past playdate. I went to add D.M.’s mom as a friend on Facebook and noticed that we had friends in common: my great-aunt (by marriage- she was married to my great-uncle) and my dad’s first cousin, both of whom live in Maine. I emailed her to ask how she knew my aunt, and she proceeded to tell me that it was HER aunt! So we’re actually first cousins-in-law, once removed. We have memories of pool parties at our aunt and uncle’s house; we’re fairly certain that we must have been in the same place at the same time at some point years ago. The smallness of our world never ceases to amaze me.

















































