… is that this:

Becomes this:

Your family more than doubles overnight. AWESOME.

Yes, it means that you enter into the realm of juggling holidays, remembering lots of new names and relationships, and meshing different backgrounds but still — you get so many amazing new family members. I mean, just look at this fun crew:On Wednesday we are headed to spend Thanksgiving in Indiana with James’ family and I am pumped. Here are just a few of the things I love about James’ family/ being at his house:

• His sister sometimes keeps bags of homemade cookie dough in the freezer and cookies the size of your fist just appear.
• They live on the quintessential midwestern farm, which means that summer visits consist of me trying to hold as many baby animals in my arms at one time as possible. And the winter visits mean that you just want to stay snuggled in the house, because it is an incredibly snuggly house.
• James’ dad doesn’t use a cell phone… and life still goes on just fine. (Lesson to be learned about our dependance on technology? I think so.)
• His mom is a phenomenal cook and I pretty much try to not stray too far from the kitchen because there are so many good things that come out of it.
• There is a rope swing in the barn. I have not been brave enough to jump out of the rafters on it, despite numerous persuasive attempts from his youngest brother. But I love that it is there.
• They have the world’s most comfortable couch. Seriously. I can already sense that the competition for who gets to nap off Thanksgiving dinner on the couch will be pretty stiff…

Yay for Thanksgiving with new family!

*Wedding photos by Whitney Neal Photography