Cousins are the best!

Cameron has been so fortunate this summer to spend time with ALL of his five cousins. I realized this and thought it would be so fun to do a post on the relationship he has with each one.

First there are the NEAL cousins: Caleb, Jack, and Paige...

Caleb is the oldest Neal grandchild and was the only one for a while! He was happy to be followed by three more in only 15 months' time. Caleb is very sweet to Cameron; I think he really likes babies a lot! He will stay right by Cameron's side and make sure he has enough toys to play with and is so delighted when Cameron is entertained by his antics. He will also make sure none of the other kids "pick on" him and makes sure no one takes his toys away. ;) We were at the mall the other day and Holly and I went to a store together and of course Cameron came along which means Caleb did too, keeping right beside his stroller the whole time. The sales clerk noticed and commented "Oh! What a great brother you are!"
Jack is the baby closest to Cameron's age on this side of the family so we fully anticipate a great friendship to form here. Whenever Jack sees Cameron he gets really excited and jumps around and laughs to show off for Cameron. And Cameron is always very happy in return. I am so excited they live close to us now as Holly and I have decided to spend days together at a time (a mini-mommy-vacay) every month or so! Jack and Cameron will be so delighted to play together during this time and, as Tyler puts it, Jack will teach Cam how to "play like a boy."
And of course his sweet cousin Paige, whom he has formed a great friendship with. I would call her his first friend! She has always been interested in and motherly to him since he was born and always very gentle with him. She definitely is a girl with mommy instinct! Since Melanie lived right here I would visit her often and as Cameron got old enough they really began to interact. When we would come over, both babies would greet each other with squeals and shouts of joy and play happily together for a long time. When they would ride in the car with their seats next to each other, Melanie and I could hear them talking and laughing with each other the whole ride.
This picture is from the last day they were in town. Sadly, Paige and company have moved far away. But we got to have Melanie and Paige at our house for a full day and night after their apt had been packed up and James had driven away with it. So just enough time to get a bath together! Classic! I really think they enjoyed having each other to play with all day. I must say they were fully occupied with each other and both contented, which was nice for Melanie and me. Here they are after bath watching "Finding Nemo." We already miss having her with us!

And then there are the MERRILL cousins: Owen and Jonas...

Jonas and Cameron are only 3 months apart! Again, we fully expect an awesome friendship to form here. This was their first opportunity to play together and Cameron sure thought Jonas was neat! We had to be careful that he didn't maul him or poke him in the eye, pull his hair, you know. Jonas also acted interested in Cameron. He was still a little young but I can't wait to see them together next time! They will have a ball!
At this point in time, Cameron is a bit small to be of significant interest to a 3 year old. But Owen is the one we anticipate as being the ring leader of the two little boys. We imagine Cam and Jonas being his two little cronies as they make mischief together, as boys do. How lucky we are to have such fabulous nieces (or niece) and nephews for Cameron to play with.We can't wait to see each of their relationships blossom and hope they will always be good friends!