A Story of Cousins

My pops is that handsome dude!

This is a story about a very big DuPont family.  My dad, Mark DuPont, has 4 siblings, and that means I have a lot of cousins on my dad's side...10 to be exact.  So, my beautiful grandmother has 12 grandchildren, which makes family gatherings crazy, in the most amazing way possible, if we're all together.  But what's even more fun, is all of the extended cousins we have that make the family even bigger.  My cousin's and I often joke about how "we are related to half of Bristol, Connecticut", but it's actually not that much of an exaggeration.


My dad went to high school with what seems like all of his cousins.  They were in the same grades, the same classes, and they saw each other every day!  Not only did they grow up together as cousins, but they were close friends.  Some of them now live in Bristol, some of them don't, but if there is one thing you can count on to happen every year, you can be sure that the cousins will all rally together back in Connecticut, and find some reason to see each other....every year.  It could be a graduation, a wedding, a birthday, or just a holiday party, but if there is a reason to celebrate, you better believe - the DuPont cousins are there. 

Then the DuPont cousins all grew up, and they had babies, so there were even MORE cousins!   The family just kept growing and growing.  And more people in the family means, more reasons to party.  Each summer, it felt like there was one more cousin swimming in Uncle Roger's pool, or there was one more burger to cook at the barbeque, or one more story to be told, and one more memory to be made.  We have hours of home videos of dance ensembles, laughing fits, babies running around the yard, and careless smiles that could make us chuckle, or bring us to tears with laughter. Each cousin can contribute to the endless memories and the story telling from the DuPont family. 

I'm dedicating this blog to all of the DuPont cousins, but most importantly to my cousin, Michele.  She has been fighting cancer for a few years and throughout her 5 year battle, she has never once sacrificed being with her family or missing out on any DuPont cousin gatherings.  Regardless of everything she has been going through, she has been a beacon of determination, of hope and of unrequited strength. This hasn't been an easy journey for her & I wanted to share how much we love her & are here for her and the rest of her immediate family during this tumultuous time.  
 
They say that you can't choose your family, but if I had to, I would pick every single one of them.  We're all vastly different, but we each play such key role in crafting the family history.  To us, there are no 1st cousins or 2nd cousins, or 3rd cousins once-removed, or cousin-in-laws. We're all cousins...that's it. During the difficult days, and times of celebration, there truly is nothing better than the love of a family, and we've got an exceptional one.  A huge one, with tons of love.  Whether we are right down the street, or 1,500 miles away, nothing breaks the bond of these DuPont family cousins.  I may be a Mobley by marriage, but I'll always be a DuPont by birth.