Well since it's apparently National Sibling Appreciation Day - and one of our siblings is currently in labor! - I thought I would recap a little about all of our siblings and where they are now. The girls sure are lucky to have all these awesome Aunts and Uncles!! (and more of these great "sister" shots of Francie and Maisie that Em took today coming next)

I'll start with the Heffernan siblings...

Brian's younger brother Mark (by 2 years) and his wife Sarah live right here in Mountain View with their cute girls Clara 3 and Caroline (1 tomorrow!) Mark works at Google as an engineer and Sarah is a scientist with a company based in Davis CA. They met on a rafting trip in Baja and then loved in Davis for 8 years while Mark got his PhD. We get to see them for lots of impromptu all-girl cousin dinners and dates.

Brian's middle sibling/sister Maureen and her husband Doug - I took this picture on Sunday, the day before Maureen's due date with baby number four for the Matthews family! Oma reports Maureen is in labor as we speak - can't wait to find out if it's a boy or girl to start the streak of 2012 babies. Maureen and Doug live in Chico CA (just south of Red Bluff) with Ellie 9, Kate 6 and Patrick 3. Doug is a colorectal surgeon in a practice with his Dad in Chico and Maureen raises happy kids, chickens and an orchard of fruit trees. They were in Salt Lake City and then New Jersey while Doug finished residency and fellowships - we are glad they are back in the area for all the family fun.

Brian's youngest sister Kat and her husband Donald (pictures with little Oliver 18 months in the backpack) are expecting number 2 next month. They live in Red Bluff, Donald puts lots of miles on his truck as a cattle rancher originally from Burns, OR and Kat teaches at the local elementary school- used to be Kindergarten and now Special Ed (she's got some great student stories :) They find their way down the Bay Area often to camp out with us so Kat and I can go to Target and hang out. (Kat used to live with Brian when I met him so we got lots of time to spend together early on) We love that they come to visit and we get to see them in Red Bluff so often.

and the other half of Brian's youngest (the twins) is Craig and his wife Andrea. They get two pictures because I love both of these photos of them :) Craig and Andrea live in LA (but we are hoping to sway them up north soon!) and are busy chasing after Isabel 4 and Thomas 2. The lost little Angel Elise last summer but are expecting a new addition to their family in June. Craig is also an engineer and Andrea is a photographer and a great artist. Her blog is andreaheffernanblog.com where you can see lots of her beautiful work.

so between those 5 siblings we have 11 cousins and FOUR more babies on the way in the next five months. Every Christmas we say "NEXT year is going to be crazy with more babies" and somehow manage to top it every year! Just wait til we have 15 teenagers running around :)

Those are the HEFF siblings! Happy Sibling Appreciation Day :)

and on MY side of the family...

James is my younger brother by 18 months and is married to Emily (who I knew before he did!) They met at the University of Arizona and got married last summer in Menlo Park. They just recently moved down to the Bay Area from San Francisco and live on a cute cottage on the same street as my parents! They have been DIY'ing machines decorating and setting up an awesome "closet" for Em (you have to see the pics, it's a whole room my brother handy-manned into a fancy closet!) and making it look cute. They have a blog on newleywed life at www.mrandmrssimo.com

Uncle Jerry - My brother Gerald works for Driscoll strawberries in Watsonville (making his mother very proud :) and is the lone bachelor in our bunch of siblings (no pressure Jer :) He went to Cal Poly SLO and lived in SF for a few years before Santa Clara Business School. He's been at Driscoll since he graduated and is an expert in the "futures" of agriculture. Jerry and Heff share a love of hunting and the outdoors and are planning a few trips out into the wilderness soon. Uncle Jerry is always a big hit with the girls when he swoops in to rile them up, give them some candy and then head home! (if your single you also get two pictures - as long as they have sibling love showered on Jerry :)

and my Baby Sis - Baby Ann (or ABA to the girls) with her husband Pat! They live in Nashville, TN where Pat is from and Ann went to school. They met while Ann was in grad school at Vanderbilt and Pat was in Business School there. His family all live in Nashville so they get to spend time with their four nieces in the south (AnneMarie, Emma, Mia and MaryEva). Ann started her own business called Smart Sprouts which I am very proud of her for and love to "talk shop" about over IM everyday and Pat is in Health Care software. They have a blog too at Ann and Pat: Nashville Newlyweds

This seemed like a fitting "all sibling" pic from Beth's wedding since the Carter kids were in it and we grew up neighbors fighting just about as much as siblings! Happy Sibling Appreciation Day to you guys too :)

and thanks to my parents for giving me my siblings! (I would have made a horrible only child :) My mom spent hours and hours on the playroom floor with us growing up, coming up with fun games and competitions and fostering a love for each other to look out for our siblings and to be friends more than we fought. And my Dad spent hours and hours building forts, driving us on road trips and photographing our childhood. He has always been a hard worker spending lots of time at the office to this day - but when he's not at the office there's no golf or hobbies to occupy his time - it's family! Thanks for setting the example Jannie and Grampa :)