the smiths.

i hope you all have people like this in your life.

the ones you can't get enough of

who've known you all your life

who live far away... but the reunions are JUST SO SWEET

who scream and hoop and hollar when you walk in the door

who then smother you with love and never let you go

{seriously - i'm talking a smith family sandwich}

and by 1:30 in the morning, you know it's time to go...

but you don't want to because you're having too much fun with four bodies smoosched together on a couch made for two

laughing and telling stories and catching up on all the things you've missed between visits.

i'm certain heaven is this happy.

but it's heaven, so you never have to go home.

that was tonight.

with the smiths.

thank you allen... for marrying jessi... and putting us all in the same place at the same time.

i grew up in san diego with jessi's grandparents, vern and ednis.

v + e's kids would visit every summer... weeks at a time... back to back.

we'd get sheri's crew for a while... then shelly's... and then codi's.

{double the pleasure, double the fun when their visits would overlap.}

it was the best time. deep sea fishing by day, grilled fish and pool party by night.

all day, every day it seemed.

we spent our long summer days together until everyone got old and moved away.

reason #43249 why i don't like this adulthood business. sweet, happy, fun, easy, fun, fun, fun days as a 17 year old in san diego. fun.

shelly, codi, ednis, sheri.

{collectively, the funniest, sassiest, moms + sisters + friends i know}

ednis. i may as well call her grandma.

sheri, tana, and baby o. isn't he a dream?

the only thing that could have made this day better is brandon + mckay, cache, carly, carson, + coby. those kids...

shelly, tana, and baby o.

you know when you're so excited to see someone that you're dancing in the driver's seat and dangerously running the yellow lights because the extra minute and a half spent waiting at the stop lights is a precious minute and a half not spent with people you love? and you know they're equally as excited to see you... and you're only ten minutes away, but they're calling to tell you to get there faster. that was tonight... and it happens every time i get to see these people.

i hope you have these kinds of people in your life.

i'm lucky enough to have 32187465 of them, it seems.