How many are you, Grandpa?

August is a very celebratory month in our family. We've got Brett, Wyatt, Dixie, of course, but we also like to throw in a special birthday bash for Grandma and Grandpa Bauerle (you might call Grandpa's a bit of "Pre-BDay" fun).

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And how "many" might they be (as Wyatt asked Grandpa)? To answer your question, this year they are ONLY EIGHTY-SIX & NINETY-SIX YEARS YOUNG.

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Here are some pictures of the Bauerle clan--I really love this bunch. We don't get together often, but when we do we have a great time!

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"Blogs" have helped us stay in touch with Brett's Bauerle

cousins in a way that we hadn't before, and although it might sound weird, I really attribute blogger.com with making us closer to them and more aware of what's going on in their lives. We've always cared about them, naturally, but I'm ashamed to say we didn't make "staying in touch" a priority before, so for several years the only time we saw them was at the annual Christmas party, mission farewells/homecomings, and birthday parties like this. I don't know if other B. family members ever felt this way, but it's hard to feel overly "warm and fuzzy" with someone when you have the same conversation with them each time you see them because so much time goes by since the last time you talked ("So how's work? School? The kids?"). Now we can "blog-stalk" their families and feel as though we are part of their day-to-day, reading about their children's milestones, commenting on their new houses being built, or viewing photos from their latest vacation. Now we earnestly look forward to any opportunity we might have to visit in person--Brett has friendly, interesting, funny, loving, sweet, wonderful cousins, aunts, & uncles and I've seen the blogs to prove it!

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In this picture of Halle & Grandma B., you'll note the "lone hole" in the top of her grin. This is on display on purpose, as she'd just lost her tooth earlier that day! Halle has such a fondness for her Great-Grandmother. LaRee has a way of making you feel like you are the most important person in the room. She's so good to Halle. Halle loves to "converse". Gab. Vocalize. She can go on and on (and on and on and on) about this or that, usually talking so fast that it's a wonder Grandma can even keep up. Yet Grandma is patient (more patient than I usually am, unfortunately) and really listens to Halle. She makes Halle feel as though what she has to say just might be life-altering. I'm not saying my daughter isn't interesting, mind you, but let's be honest. A 7-Year old's stories can, after a while, sometimes be a bit...what's the word? Lengthy? Exaggerated? Tiresome? Yes, all three at times. But I think Halle knows that when she's around Grandma she's definitely got someone who wants to hear what she has to say.

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Speaking of gabbing, I LOVED seeing Halle and Kristen's daughter, Morgan, chat it up. They are only about 18 months apart, but when you are younger, 18 months can be quite a gap developmentally. This time they found they had very common interests (anything Miley or Hannah Montana...ROCK ON!). It was cute to observe them off in the corner, visiting happily and moving their hands around as they spoke with excitement.