Growing up, Kristi, Tiffany and I were nearly inseparable. Both are a year younger, but I always looked forward to cousin visits. More than anything, we were straight-up goofy. We come by it honestly.

Now we’re grown and both Kristi and Tiffany were blessed with beautiful children this summer. Kristi, her second; and Tiffany, her first. And thankfully, they were nice enough to let me come over and snag some photos of their new loves.

Sam arrived in May and was welcomed by his big sister, Claire. She also turned three in May. Sam was three months when we got together and he’s a soft, sweet, huggable boy. I don’t mind chatting with Claire either. She’s a beautiful, spunky girl who is a joy to be around. Kristi’s love for her little munchkins is wonderfully obvious.

Tiffany and I talked about getting together for some maternity photos on a Tuesday. She reached out to me while I was in Chicago the weekend prior and thought it might be a good idea to meet up on Sunday night because she was having some mild contractions. Well, it turns out that the contractions were going to result in us meeting just a week later to do newborn photos of miss Elliette Jean. She arrived four weeks early and was the teeniest, tiniest baby I’ve ever had the complete fear pleasure of holding. Tiffany is going to be a fantastic little mama.

I don’t want to leave out Ben and Andrew. Obviously, they know how to pick ’em. But, this post is all about the cousins. I am only (only) a year older than these two but I’m so proud of them and the families they’re creating. I just hope the goofiness is properly passed on. There are just some traits worth inheriting.