Our first shower

Our first shower was held on Christmas Eve last year. Like many families now, my family did not grow up near my grandparents or our cousins. While my family lived in Colorado, my extended family was in New Mexico and Texas. So what we did do was create a “family” in Colorado. Two other families near us had kids around my brother and my ages, and were also far from their extended families. Our 3 families started sharing holidays, birthdays, and life milestones together. There are a total of 9 kids in the "Colorado Family," and there are only 3 of us girls, so I made Miss. P and Miss JH two of my bridesmaids!

We have all grown up and moved on. Most of my "Colorado Family" is located throughout the US now, and most have started families of their own. However, despite the distance, Christmas is still a tradition. We have now started on and off years in Colorado for the holidays; spending the off years with the in-laws. 2007 was an on year, bringing us all together again. The next time we will all be together is the wedding, as 2008 is an off year.

Anyway, this shower had an Irish theme (even though they served great Lebanese food) – it was a blast! However, I am typically the one throwing parties and making sure everyone is happy, so it was really odd having all eyes on us! I wore a veil and we made out like bandits (which was great because we hadn’t even registered yet)! Even though the gifts were wonderful, it was even better sharing that special moment with the family and knowing they support us in our marriage. It was wonderful!

The original 9 with the significant others:



The ones that have kids now.... (we had 6 little ones running around, it was so much fun!):



Me and Mr. B opening gifts:



Do you have family friends that are like family?