Because having class with your cousin and being picked up from school by your grandparents was a totally normal day growing up.
1. Family game nights were a regular occurrence.
When your whole family lived in the same two-mile radius, there was never a need for planning get-togethers, you just showed up in your aunt’s driveway with a pizza and a deck of cards.
2. You never understood people that only saw their family on holidays.
Only seeing family twice a year was like a foreign idea when you rarely ever made it through the day without seeing at least an aunt or an uncle.
3. There is an obligatory ‘cousins picture’ from every major school event.
First day of school, pep rallies, prom whatever the occasion, your grandparents always mandated that a group picture be taken.
4. You considered your cousin’s grandparents your secondary grandparents.
Even though there is no blood relationship between you and your cousins' other side of the family, you were around them enough that you felt like part of that side of the family too.
5. There was a relative that all of your friends thought was hot.
What was even more awkward than that was when you were sitting in class and girls you’ve never had a conversation with started talking about how they had a crush on one of your cousins.
6. You knew there was no point in hiding your relationships.
Because really, it wasn’t an option. Even if you avoided talking to your significant other in the halls at school to keep your cousins from finding out, the first time you tried to get coffee or go out to eat, odds are you would run into one of your aunts or uncles.
7. Whenever you ordered food there was a chance your cousin would deliver it.
With only so many take out places in your town, there was a good chance one of your relatives would be the person taking your order.
8. You always had the biggest cheering section in high school.
When your aunt lived on the homecoming parade route you knew there was no avoiding having the whole family scream your name from her driveway while you marched by.
9. Having to drive more than five minutes to see family was unthinkable.
When you grew up being able to walk to your cousin’s houses, having to drive to a different town to see them sounded like a cross-country road trip.
10. Your cousins were more like your siblings.
You probably carpooled with at least one of your cousins to school and you guys were all babysat together on the weekends. Everything from trips to the zoo to days on the lake were whole-family events being that everyone was so close together.
11. Going to a different college than your relatives felt unnatural at first.
All through high school you just wanted space from your family – or just the ability to go on a date without it making it into the family newsletter – but the second you set foot on a college campus without your whole family by your side it suddenly didn’t sound so bad. Although you may not want to admit it, you miss being teased by your cousins in the hallway on your way to class.
