Yes, I'm One of THOSE People!

You know the type of parent. They flood your e-mail inbox with dozens of pictures of their children, saturate their blogs with funny stories about their kids that only they care about, perpetually send Christmas family portraits conspicuously missing adults, and generally make cutesy nuisances of themselves. You know the type.

I thought I knew the type, until the type became me.














No, there aren't any kids on the horizon for Stephanie and me. I’m talking about my niece, Aaliyah. Though she is already two years old, we'd not yet met. She lives with her mom, Shino and her dad, my brother Jonathan, in Okinawa, Japan. Stephanie and I haven’t had the opportunity to get out there yet and Jonathan and Shino hadn’t been Stateside in several years.

Then, two weeks ago, my entire family converged on Portland, Oregon, for a reunion. In addition to the Japanese Fibbs’, my sister Gabi came up from San Diego with her new wife Helen (whom we’d also not yet met).

We spent a wonderful week and a half together. Some of the days were packed (as when we rented a 15 passenger van, crowded in with all the cousins, and took a drive through the Hood River Valley as my grandfather described his family’s immigration there from South Dakota during the Great Depression)...


















...and some were deliciously restful (just sitting around reveling in the sound of each others’ voices and the pleasure of seeing each other in the flesh). Though Stephanie and I would also find the time for some side trips to Mount St. Helens and Seattle, the real purpose of the trip was to spend time with family.










































































It was a wonderful time. Helen was a delight and we loved discovering exactly why Gabi is so in love with her.
















































But the star of the show had to be little Aaliyah. She was the one who stole everyone’s hearts. Even now, slightly more than a week later, I can still smell her hair, feel her soft skin, hear her giggles. Jonathan and Shino, I want her back!

If you're already sick of my post, then we'd better just move on to the pictures while we still have time. Many parents claim they have the cutest kids, but you and I know differently. However, with Jonathan and Shino, it simply happens to be true.

































































































































If you actually want more, click here, here, here and here.