Tia and Elyse

Posted By on March 27, 2013

Mark’s cousins Elyse and Tia came to visit this week. We haven’t seen them in a really long time, since Mark’s Uncle Joe got married in June 2010. Sam wasn’t even a year old. So when they decided to come to visit, we were really excited. We couldn’t wait for them to really get to know Sam and see how wonderful and funny she is. Most of the time, Sam is really shy around new people, so to break the ice, we asked Sam if she would like to show the girls her room. That always works — Sam loves her room so much she can’t resist showing it off to anyone who will come and take a look.

Off we all went and Sam completely opened up. She must have dragged out almost every stuffed animal, every toy, and every book in her room. Here, she is showing Tia one of her favorite pop-up books.

This is her butterfly that plays music and lights up. It was originally a part of her activity mat so she has had it since she was a baby, but she still loves it.

Hungry Hungry Hippos was a priority, since it is her favorite game. Everyone had to get in on the fun! Sam cheats a bit, which Elyse figured out pretty quickly. 🙂

The girls were such good sports.  Sam wanted so badly to do crafts with them and so they let her. I am sure it is not exactly how they wanted to spend their evening, but they jumped right in and played with Sam and crafted with her.

All of the artists hard at work! Sam is checking out everyone’s handiwork.

We asked Sam if she would give Tia a nice hug and she just about strangled her, but that is the kind of hugs Sam gives.

Later, Elyse went in to play with Sam on her own. Every time Mark and I would go in to check on them, Sam would push us away and tell us, “You go in there and talk to [MomMom/PopPop/Mommy/Daddy].”  It was so cute. She didn’t want us anywhere near their games. Sam had such a great time.

Elyse and Sam were putting her little popping bunnies into Easter eggs and letting them pop into the air. Sam was hysterical laughing the whole time.

The next day, everyone gathered at Mark’s parents’ house to just hang out together and visit. It was such a great visit, but much too short. Both Mark and I wish that we lived closer so that Sam could get to know that part of her family better. She bonded with Elyse and Tia so fast. After arriving at the restaurant where we had dinner, Sam wouldn’t even hold my hand in the parking lot, she wanted to hold Elyse’s hand. And she kept referring to the girls as, “my sisters” which I loved. We all can’t wait for Elyse’s wedding in October so we can see everyone again. I just hope after that, we don’t make it too long a wait to see this wonderful part of our family again. Thanks for visiting!

One Response to “Tia and Elyse”

  1. Debbi Plenn says:

    OMG. The girls are so grown up and beautiful. I can’t believe Elyse is getting married. I remember her when she was a flower girl in your wedding. So glad Sam got to spend time with her cousins even though she called them her sisters.

Leave a Reply

Please note: Comment moderation is currently enabled so there will be a delay between when you post your comment and when it shows up. Patience is a virtue; there is no need to re-submit your comment.