dig in, it's worth the read...

here's why
living next door to our in-laws
works for us:
(because we know it doesn't work for 99% of the population)

first and foremost, we're friends. we're not just a pile of kids, parents, grandparents and grandkids - and all the obligations that go along with them. we are all of that and then we are friends. for example, when my mom-in-law snapped an early morning pic of me (unbeknownst, people, unbeknownst) carrying vegetables from the garden with luke and i was in the magical state of half-dress - braless with a piece of underwear here and a piece of jammie pants there...instead of getting upset when i came home later that day and saw it posted on my back door with a sign that read, "someone is watching you!" - i started laughing and, of course, planning my revenge.

anyhoo, back to the point at hand - why we work so well together. friendship aside, there are a few other reasons...one being that we're all pretty mellow - all four of us. it doesn't mean we don't get loud, or are hurt at times, or even are mean at times...but we don't want a fight, won't have a fight and will do all to avoid a fight. and as much as it annoys joe and cathy, when we're having problems we do a little state-of-the-union with them (trust me, family, friends and neighbors - there will be problems from time to time). and for the most part, everything gets smoothed out.

another reason this works is that we're all pretty much an open book (which is one of my major life philosophies). i mean, we don't have secrets or shadowy corners in our life. there's no extra drama behind closed doors, no mood swings or tempers.

we also have experienced a healthy dose of humilty/shaming at their hands. have they caught us eating ice-cream in our underwear while watching blades of glory? of course. have they caught us standing on our porch in our underwear, digging through the dryer for a pair of jeans or a favorite t-shirt? but, of course, again. has cathy seen my birthday suit and not really cared? i should explain that one - i was nine months pregnant, water just broken, in the shower with her peeking in and keeping an eye on me while nick called the doctor - so technically, she was in nurse cathy mode and it doesn't really count. but brass tacks being brass tacks - she saw me completely naked. it's amazing what pregnancy hormones do to the brain, because i should have been horrified - but wasn't. but by this time we'd been living in eachother's pocket for five years - we'd probably seen worse of eachother. shocker, i know. imagine your mother-in-law seeing you naked!

do you like how most of our open book policy seems to gravitate around nudity or near-nudity? it's not always the case, but it does make for the funnier stories. and to make the disclaimer loud and clear - we have never caught the mom and dad-in-law in any state of nudity. it's all on our side. though, we have caught them eating their fair share of ice-cream for dinner.

anyhoo, the point being - we love them, they love us. and if they don't love us as much as we love them, the kids make it worth it. it's like this - "oh, we used the last of your gas to mow our lawn last week and forgot to fill it up by the time you needed to mow yours (we haven't done this in years- i think, i hope)...eek, our bad - oh look over there, it's a kid in a tutu eating a popsicle! how could you resist that?"...

oh, remember that whole
revenge-planning-thing
i mentioned earlier,
let me get this over with:

cathy in lycra.
(it is essential that you click on the picture to enlarge)
and because cathy can't work the computer without papa joe
joe in lycra.
i'm sorry.
i had to do it.
you were an accessory.i'd say
we can call it even
for now.