My niece Lisa holds her two-year-old son Zeke.
With my oldest sister Fran and her two daughters, my beloved number one and two nieces (I have six total), living so far away from me in Seattle, I have to quickly seize the rare moments that I can see them.
My oldest niece Becky and baby Kate share a laugh.
One of those was earlier this month, when all of them traveled to Chicago to visit family and show off the newest addition to our clan, baby Kate. So I punched out of my mom-duty clock and joined them last weekend, which gave me a chance to also see my mother (who Fran and I stayed with), aunt, uncle, cousins, and brother’s family.
Kate seems intrigued with my sister-in-law Fran.
It was a whirlwind yet wonderful 48 hours!
Sidebar: Long-time blog readers probably are wondering how smoothly my travels went. Need you really ask?!? My flight to Chicago was delayed four hours due to nasty weather in the windy city, and I got sick on the bumpy return flight. No fun at all, my friends. Glad I don’t have to take to the unfriendly skies again for awhile.
My baby brother, the hot-shot Chicago lawyer, and my sister-in-law Fran hosted our immediate family at their lovely swankienda. There I got my fill of holding my niece Becky’s three-month-old baby. Does “adorable” adequately describe Kate, who looks just like a doll? She had me at her first toothless smile.
Zeke slows down just long enough for a quick pic.
I must say that both nieces have done an admirable job at producing the cutest kids ever (well, after my two sons, of course). My niece Lisa’s toddler Zeke loves trains, just like mine did, and is a whirlwind of activity. I almost got dizzy trying to keep up with him and his über-cute grin.
Becky and her husband Ken pose with their darling daughter after her naming.
The next day was Kate’s baby shower and Jewish baby naming at Giordano’s, a wonderful pizzeria in the suburbs. The little cutie pie was almost perfect, as everyone oohed and aaahed over her. Must be tough being so adored!
Four generations: My sister Fran, our mom, Becky, and baby Kate
So now my oldest niece, who I so well remember as a baby, has a daughter of her own. She, Ken, and Kate truly are a family, just like her sister Lisa, her husband Chris, and Zeke.
Families—they’re worth braving my travel jinx for!
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Hi Aunt Susan,
Thanks for the awesome post. I was so glad you were able to take time off from Mom duties (like you actually did) and meet us in Chicago. It was great to see you and attempt to catch up. Luckily, we have our blogs and FB to keep us close.
Big hug,
Lisa
Lisa: Wish we lived closer! It was fun spending time together.