Country Cousins

A couple of weeks ago Rick was in need of an unscheduled appointment at the doctor's office, and I needed to be there. My sister called up and enthusiastically offered to watch the kids.  It was a beautiful day outside, and it sounded like she already had planned activities for the 11 kids she would have before she even called me. It was a great help!

When I picked up the kids later that evening, I asked how their day was. They said:

"Oh man, we had a blast!"
"It was like, the best day EVER!"
"Yeah Mom, I can't wait until we get to go back!"

I could relate.  Growing up, we had many cousins. Some of them I got to know better than others, although they're all great.  Some of my best memories  involve two cousins we were the closest to.  Because I don't like to use names without permission, we'll call them Red and Blonde.

Red and Blonde's parents had a neat place "up north".  On the weekends they would go up north, mostly because my uncle has an unmatched passion for fishing.  Sometimes they would pick me up on the way.  For me, this was "the best day ever!".  When I was little we did not go away very often, and it was a real treat.  At least once per trip my uncle would take us out on the lake to go swimming or tubing.  It was much better than jumping off the dock where the muck was plentiful, but we did that, too.  Often we would take the pedal boat out and go up and down the channel.  We'd ride our bikes down to the little store (now closed) and spend every last dime we had on penny candy.

One weekend the three of us acquired 24 cans of red pop.  I have no idea how we got that case...but it didn't take us long to figure out that we each got 8 cans.  While Blonde and I were a little more strategic in our consumption, Red enjoyed most all of hers the first day.  That night we went to bed in the little hallway type bedroom, which had bunk beds.  It was quiet for a little while. Then it was noisy as Red got sick from all that Red Pop...and my aunt made sure we all knew the lesson about drinking too much Red Pop. I have not had one can since!

Another trip they picked me up in their bluish Buick car.  There was a recliner in the backseat, flipped over so the back part layed on top of the bench seat.  It took up half the seat, leaving the other half for the three of us.  I still don't know how we fit back there, but man it was worth it!

It was a blast at their house, too. In the winter we would ride their snowmobiles around the yard, singing old Alabama songs, for what seemed like forever.  In the Summer we would swim in the horse tank (no kidding), play on the custom Merry-go-Round my uncle made, and hang up LOADS of laundry.  When I think about their house, I can hear the Detroit Tigers playing on the T.V. and I can almost smell my aunt's suppers cooking.  Occasionally my uncle would let us split a Mountain Dew, which came in the tall green glass bottle.

My mom took Red, Blonde and I to cedar point one time. We camped at a campground overnight then promptly left mom as soon as we entered the park.  I think mom thought the 4 of us were going to spend the day together...sorry 'bout that, mom!




I searched through all my photo books, only to learn I have no pictures from about 1st grade through 8th grade.  They must be at Mom's.  This is Red and Blonde at a concert we all went to together, which I'm sure we had a blast at.  We saw The Tractors, David Ball, and Brooks & Dunn...all of which are no longer together. Great memories with even better cousins.  Love you guys!

As we grew older there were fewer sleep-overs and trips up north, but we filled in with cousin campouts and graduation open houses.  As adults we may only see each other a couple times per year,  but I think of Red and Blonde often-including every time I see a can of Red Pop or a commemorative glass bottle of Mountain Dew.
Cousins are special people-they're friends and family all rolled into one.  My sister may have been doing us a favor that day, but really she helped create life long memories for my kids, for which I am grateful for. Thank you!

-Terri