Meet the Family 1

I was brainstorming last night of something to post about today and I thought of my family. If you haven't already noticed, my family means the whole wide world to me!  
They have influenced my life in ways I can't explain, so I thought I would give you an idea of who they are.  

So...here is a little mini-bio of each of the amazing people whom I am lucky enough to call FAMILY!  Today I will talk about my side of the family.

First is my amazing husband Ramesh.  We have known one another since our freshman year of college and each year keeps getting better. He is from Sri Lanka, works in the medical field, plays Cricket, loves to travel, is a foodie and is pretty damn awesome! Along with those things he is smart (almost sickening), dependable, caring, funny, and I am so proud to have him as my husband!

I LOVE this photo of him, he may disagree...but it's not his blog!

My Mom, Gail, is next.  She has been a home-bound teacher since I was a baby - this is basically going to the homes of children who cannot go to traditional school for various reasons.  She is humble, honest, incredibly caring, giving...and so many other things.  I sit here and stare at my screen because I don't really know how to describe her in a way that does her any sort of justice.  She is the person I inspire to be everyday and I am so glad to call her my Mom and my best friend!

My Mom at our cabin last Christmas

My dad, Tim.  Dad is an accountant and is "semi-retired" as he likes to say...but really...he is basically retired!  YEAH FOR YOU DAD!  He has worked harder than anyone I know to get to where he is.  He is a philanthropist, brilliant, quite, loving, thoughtful.  Like my mom, it is hard to describe the kind of man he is. He has taught me what it means to contribute to society in a positive and meaningful way, he has taught me undying love.  In the words of our father-daughter dance songs "You are my hero and that will never change - You still can dry my tears with just a smile - The one I've leaned on -From my first steps to walking down the aisle"

This photo is from our Sri Lanka trip.  We were on a safari and this is one of my favorite pictures of my Dad!

Andrea - my eldest (and prettiest some may say) sister.  Andrea has always been the sister that is unreachable to me.  She is 7 years older than I am and has always been the "big sister".  I still remember her first dance she went to in high school because I wanted to be her and wear her dress.  I remember the story I wrote about her in elementary school...I remember a lot of things about growing up with the oldest sister...she was almost the elusive character in my childhood that I always wanted to be like.  Now she is teacher, a mom, a wife, a friend. I am proud of her and am so happy to have her in my life as a friend, and sister.

Andrea and her daughter, Tatum, this summer at our parent's cabin

Julie - the middle child.  Julie has always been the quite and adventurous one of the bunch.  She excels in everything she does and makes it look easy!  Julie is a Veterinarian and has lived her adult life like most of us only get dream about.  She recently got back from 8 months overseas.  She went from New Zealand, to the Cook Islands, to France, to Denmark and finally made it back home!  She loving, dependable, funny, intelligent, trustworthy, and just plain fantastic! Also, we are kind of twins...or so we hear!

Julie hiking in New Zealand

There you have it, my side of the family!  I love them with everything in my being and am so happy to get to introduce them all to you!  Welcome to our family!