How big is your extended family? What are the holidays like for you and your family?
My extended family is of moderate size – my mom has three siblings, all married, and through them I have five cousins; my mother’s mother is still living, as are four or five of my blood-related great-aunts and great-uncles on that side (as well as their spouses), and through them I have probably another dozen cousins, most of whom I rarely see. My father has four brothers, and through them I have three cousins; both of his parents have died in the past six years, and I think their siblings have passed on as well. I’m not as aware of most of my distant cousins on that side of my family, though I may have an opportunity to meet more of them soon. When I spend holidays with my family, it can get pretty nutty, traveling around New England from Burlington, Vermont, to Boston, and to Albany, New York. The last time I was there was in December of 2003, when I traveled with my brothers and our girlfriends to all three of those cities as well as to New York City and its suburbs.