Baby E,
You were up all night and all morning moving around. I think all that activity wore you out then you were ready to party while your mom was trying to sleep :) Today is your Aunt Val's birthday so it is time to finish up our Lang family introductions. Our final stop on the Lang side is your Aunt Valerie, Aunt Kim and Uncle Jeff. Yes, I know your Aunt Sheila got her own post but she bribed me with ice cream dessert and she was dying to see her post. :)
One thing makes me sad about you coming so late in my life - you don't get to experience life with your Aunts and Uncle like I did. When I was little, Aunt Valerie lived across the street and Aunt Kim lived in Omaha. Uncle Jeff could be found in Omaha with the exception of a couple of Missouri or Vegas trips. Now, Aunt Val is in Denver (although she is planning on coming back to Omaha), Aunt Kim is in Houston and Uncle Jeff is kind of like "Where is the world is Waldo?" - we never know where is he. :)
I can only hope that your Aunt Laura and your Uncles Tyler & Zach are as good to you as my Aunts and Uncle are to me. I honestly feel like I would be lost without my Aunts and Uncle. They have always took me under their wing and made me a part of their families. They took me on trips with them, they taught me things, they let me lean on them when I need to and they are just a constant source of support when I need them. You know how I have told you like 15 times that I was scared of Gramma Lang? How I was scared to disappoint her? Well, even if she went soft on me, I knew my Aunts and Uncle would be next in line to whip me into shape and they scared me too.
Your Uncle Jeff is my only Uncle and he is the only one left in my life that is one of those go-to guys. Him and Larry were always the people I could call to know the answer to anything or know who to contact if we needed something. We always say they were the guys who knew people who knew people :) Now that Larry is gone, Uncle Jeff is the only guy I know that knows people who knows people. haha. I can't see your Uncle beating your dad up if he was mean to me but he would probably be the first person I would go to and cry on his shoulder. I can only hope that maybe he would do something manipulative behind the scenes to get your dad's knees broken. haha - just kidding you Eli. Your dad is too scared of Gramma Debi D to be mean to me but that just illustrates how much confidence I have in your Uncle. Sometimes, I don't know what he is thinking and I don't think I have ever heard him say "I love you", but, I know for certain, that no matter what, he would do anything for me and I bet that will carry over to you. Your Uncle is great with kiddos - especially when he can give them back to their parents after awhile. But, I am going to warn you again - be good or you will get a thump to the head. Unc is infamous for his thumps to the head. While he is a bit older and his body has had more wear and tear on it, I really doubt that his hands have gone soft. Seriously kid - those thumps hurt and I am trying to save you. If you don't believe me, you can ask any of your cousins.
I asked your dad what I inherited from your Uncle Jeff and he said I am kind and generous like your Uncle. Hmmm...that one took me off guard but your Uncle is always kind to me. I asked why your dad said he was generous and he said "He would do anything for you - that is being generous." I hope that you can inherit his skills - he is a jack of all trades. His metabolism would be a great thing for you to get too so you don't end up a big fat pig :)
I think your Aunt Val is more excited about you than I am - if that is possible. She is only using me and your dad as our connections to you. Once I pop you out, I will be forgotten as a niece and she will focus all of her energy on you :) She told me recently that I have had 34 years of being spoiled so it is time for me to get pushed to the side and let you get spoiled. She is right - I was spoiled rotten. Whether it was her taking me on vacations or buying me things or just spending time with me. Your aunt helped me with school when I needed a co-signer on a loan - I appreciated her trust in me and the help I so desperately needed. She was a role model for me - I watched her work her way through her degree, go on to get her masters and I watched her be successful in her careers. I also think that she would do anything for me and I know for certain that she will for you too. Watch out when she is back in Omaha to spoil you rotten :)
I inherited a lot of traits that your Aunt Val has. I am outspoken like she is (sometimes that doesn't benefit either of us - haha). I am ambitious and might even go as far as to say as aggressive as she is. I asked your dad what characteristics he thinks I inherited from her. He said I am smart like her, outgoing like her, funny like her, I like to spend money like her and "you will love Elijah like she loves her boys." Crack me up but I think that is a huge compliment to your Aunt Val - she does love her boys to pieces. I hope that you can take after us and speak your mind and pursue what you want in your life. Maybe as we are softening in our old age, we can teach you to do it with a little more tact than I often show.
Then, there is your Aunt Kimberly. She was the closest thing that I had to a big sister growing up. She is 15 years older than me but she has always been more like a buddy to me than an aunt. I wouldn't want to disappoint her any more than I would Uncle Jeff or Aunt Val but her reaction would be different. Where Unc would thump me upside the head and Aunt Val would lecture me, Aunt Kim would take that quiet approach of disappointment and (whether or intentionally or not) make me feel guilty. Aunt Kim would take me shopping, introduced me to music, take me to movies and we would always pig out together. I don't know that the shopping and eating were healthy but I have very fond memories of hanging out with her in both Omaha and Houston. Aunt Kim is one of those people that you just like to be around. I always enjoy my time with her and hope that we will get you down to see her often. We always laugh alot. We always laugh about how crazy our family is. Maybe the family is the sane and your Aunt Kim and I are the crazy ones. I haven't seen Aunt Kim with a lot of babies but I have no doubt that she will be loving you up. She told me recently that she will be coming up to see you - I can't wait for her visit and to see her love you up.
Your dad always says that I have your Aunt's body shape. I always laughed at that because it was always covered in fat :) Once I started losing weight, he always said that I was like your Aunt Kim. Aunt Kim would probably make a joke about that and feel sorry for me since she thinks she is all hips. I know for a fact I inherited her sweet tooth. I wish I would have inherited her laid back personality - she is really easy going where I am strung pretty tight. Your dad says I am stubborn like her but I don't think I ever would have called her stubborn. I would still say that comes from your Gramma Lang. I also inherited her love for animals - she is a foster mom to shelties. I hope that you are laid back like her, caring like her, have a good heart like her and avoid our sweet tooth like the plague!!
I think you are coming along late enough in life that you won't have to be scared of your Aunts & Uncle - you will benefit from just being loved to pieces by them. I will get to be the funsucker and be the one making sure you are good. We will also have to leave it up to Aunt Laura and Uncle Tyler/Zach to scare you into being good because my Aunts and Uncle will be too busy spoiling you and thinking your antics are funny :)
