With Lee’s Mom’s Family: The Huge, Warm Family Includes 2 Adopted Children

Lee is the oldest of three boys raised in Upstate New York. Tom is single and living in NYC while Zach, a Marine helicopter pilot, is married and stationed in Hawaii. He is currently on a tour of duty in Iraq, and the family can't wait for his safe return.

Lee's father passed away suddenly while Lee was in college. His mother, Mary Ellen, is currently studying to be a nurse after staying at home to raise the boys. The whole family is tickled pink about her upcoming graduation.

Christmas with Cassandra’s Family

While in-person visits are rare due to far-flung locales, when the family gets together it's fun and lively. The extended family of 13 cousins is close and talkative. Christmas Eve at Lee's Mom's house is standing room only with nearly 30 family members. If you don't make it to the food table early, you may miss out on the highlight-noodle kugel. In between visits, everyone keeps in touch via frequent e-mails and phone calls.

Cassandra is also the oldest of three children. Little sis Carrie is the married mother of Jack. Little brother Jarrod is the married father of Ingrid and Millicent with a third child on the way.

Cassandra's dad is a farmer and her mother an English teacher. All three kids loved growing up on the farm in rural Missouri. Many meals were eaten on the tailgate of a pickup truck in the middle of a field during planting or combining season. Everyone did what they could to help from driving tractors to bottle feeding orphaned calves.

Since Cassandra's family is only a couple hours away, family get-togethers are frequent for holidays and birthdays. The highlight of every Christmas is Santa (longtime family friend Big Bob) visiting the grandchildren on Christmas Eve.

Our Home

We love our neighborhood! It is close to a big city, so there is a lot to do, but far enough out to be open and safe. The neighborhood is full of children of all ages and there are frequent neighborhood activities from block parties to Fourth of July bicycle parades for the kids. Some of our best friends live next door and have a toddler and one on the way. We can't wait for our children to grow up together!

Our Backyard is Already Equipped for Lots of Play Time

When we moved here last summer, we bought a house with a family in mind. It is a homey, two-story with four bedrooms and a full basement--our nieces' favorite play area. When they visit, we build forts there out of boxes and blankets. There's plenty of play area outside too--the previous owners left a wonderful swing set with a slide and a fort. We look forward to many hours spent playing on it with a little one!