fam.

Here is my family. They are the greatest people on this earth. Let me tell you why.

First there is my mom. Obviously I am going to talk about her first because Laura is the most important. You can call her Laura, Mom, Mommy, hefty (its not as demeaning as it comes off), ect. She will respond to pretty much anything. I have seen her at her best and at her worst-I mean I did live with her for 18 years. The thing is though, her worst is what most people consider average. She is patient with my dad and I when we are difficult. She is gracious and gives so much of herself. She is beautiful. Leave it to her to care about all the little things in my life that no one else cares about. I can call her anytime, in any mood, and I know she will listen to me. She does not need to be the center of attention. She is strong and so wonderfully confident. She loves my dad for exactly who he is. She is slow to anger and forgives like nobody's business. She is a good secret keeper. Gosh, there are just so many things that Laura Leigh is good at. I could go on and on. Okay great I will then. She knows that she wants and likes and she does not care if other people do not agree with her. For instance, she thought this mosquito repellent clip on was really cool. Poor thing.

She is fun to be around, and I love the days that we spend together. They usually consist of mexican food and ice cream and shopping. She does more for Austin and I than I think we can even understand. She is a great example of Paul's kind of contentness (not a word...whatever) no matter the circumstance. The relationship that my parents have is probably one of the coolest marriages I have ever seen. Not that I am a marriage watcher in my spare time. They've shown me what marriage is supposed to look like. Isn't this pic of Mark and Laura just presh? I know it really is. GULF SHORES 2009!! But seriously.

Then theres Markus. He can go by fattie, dad, daddio, laddie, lardo. My personal favorite is father figure...I can be really demanding and say it in a british accent. He is a provider. Northern Trust for LIFE. He is a perfectionist. He is proud of Austin and I, and he is good at encouraging us. He is a sports guru. He listens to Houston's hit radio station on the way home from work and tends to come home singing anything from lady gaga to kayne. He knows more pop culture than I do. Seriously. I swear he knows the most pointless things that no one else knows. He is a hard worker. One of his favorite things is vacations. Not only does he love to go on them with us, but he loves to plan them. On the way home from a vacation, he likes to talk about what we should do next and where we should go next year. He loves my mom more everyday. He is the definition of a people person. He will talk to anyone and he can relate to anyone. For example, this picture below was taken in San Fransisco a few years ago.

People were playing mad gab at Starbucks. I walked out of the bathroom to find my dad had made friends with this random group of teenagers and was playing mad gab with them. I thought to myself...only my dad. Okay at the time I probably thought he was weird and embarrassed of him, but I am sure I kept my cool like usual. When I am with him around people I do not know, I am comfortable because I know he is with me and can make up for my first impression awkwardness that tends to present itself at unwanted times. I realized I have a smile I use when I am not sure if I know the person. It is a mixture between a teeth smile and non teeth smile. Anyways, it is REALLY hideous looking and I probably use it once a day. But this is not about me...gosh I am so selfish. He is not awkward, and he can literally strike up a conversation just like that..."at the top of the hat" some might say. Sometimes it takes people a long time to figure out that he is funny. He is serious when he needs to be, like at work. It is not until outside of work functions that others start to realize how funny he is. He usually gets the line "Mark, be funny." As if he can just be funny right on the spot. I can relate to that. Except, he is funnier than I am. He is my favorite person to be around. He can liven up a party for sure. I cannot imagine life without him.

Welp, that leaves me with brother. He goes by bro, Aussie, queer, homo, and many more I probably shouldn't name on here. Don't worry I really do love him though. I could not ask for a better big brother really. I grew up thinking he was cool until one day I realized he was actually a huge goofball. Its okay though, he is still somewhat cool I guess.

He likes me more than he lets on. We think most of the same things are funny, and we enjoy making fun of people. We are really good at it. It is nice being around him because we watch all the same movies and TV shows mostly, so when we quote things we do not look dumb because the other person understands. I hate it when I quote something and no one gets it. Get with the culture people. Anyways, when he left for college, it was a lot harder than I thought it was going to be. While he was living it up at Baylor, I was left at home with the upstairs all to myself. I did not like it. I do not like to be myself that much, so I just missed him simply being there. He could be in his room and I could be in mine and it would be fine. WIthout him just being there, it was different. I got over it eventually, and now we have been able to share Baylor together. OH MY GOSH SO PRESH. When he puts his mind to something, he can accomplish it. He played golf in high school, and continues to play, and he has worked hard at it for so many years. He also taught me how to play golf. I do not practice so I wouldn't say I am good. Okay I am terrible, but not because of the teaching. I remember when he first started waterskiing. He decided he wanted to be good at it, so everytime we were at someone's lakehouse, he would practice. I would sit on the boat and do nothing, while he would be out there for hours. Now, I can say he is almost as good as dad.

He makes me laugh a lot because he is funny. Simple as that. He is smart, and he likes to read. My whole family likes to read. Finally by about the age of 14, I realized I should probably start reading if I want to fit in with the fam. He is usually updated on what is going in the world, while half the time I am oblivious. He is a confident person. He is a boxcar eater (as in he eats one thing at a time until he finishes it), and he pretty much eats his food at hyper speed. Which unfortunately has rubbed off on me. He is able to make me feel special. I have loved watching him and my dad's relationship develop throughout the years. They are golf buddies, basketball watchers, and best friends. They talk on the phone at least once a day, and exchange dumb text messages randomly throughout the day. I love them both. I could not have two better men in my life...If we are calling Austin a man here. I wish that this was not his last semester at Baylor. I have grown accustomed to having him here, and I have a feeling when he leaves I am going to miss him more than I think.


I know this post goes on and on. You really can't put a word limit on family though you know?
That's all.