The ultimate big sister, Amanda has always been a role model for Ashley—whether they were battling it out in academics (Ashley insists she usually won) or teaming up on the soccer field. Ashley had a special talent for getting under Amanda’s skin and earning the legendary big-sister side eye. Amanda even let Ashley live with her and Jay during her residency in Connecticut, where Ashley happily served as their first ‘practice child.’ She excelled in the role—especially as a shopping partner—regularly adding ‘essentials’ like a bocce set or giant inflatable bowling to Amanda’s cart. Perfect training for their eventual promotion to real parenthood with Gavin and Connor.

Trainee turned ride-or-die, Megan met Ashley during her residency in South Carolina, where Ashley was her preceptor. After surviving that, they celebrated with the ultimate girls’ trip through Portugal and Spain. Since then, they’ve been inseparable—whether catching up at pharmacy conferences or chasing new adventures. Together they’ve floated thousands of feet in the air in a hot air balloon and raced through the snow on dog sleds in northern Minnesota… and they’re still looking for their next thrill.

Cory and Timmy—the family’s unofficial crash test dummy—were inseparable bunkmates growing up, usually teaming up against Ben and Justin. College turned them into spirited hockey rivals—Tim at Minnesota, Cory at UND. Tim eventually moved to Berlin with Beth and welcomed their first child, Ophelia. When Cory and Ashley visited for Oktoberfest, let’s just say a few steins didn’t survive the night.

Cory’s longtime ski sidekick. From Lakeville North High to the University of North Dakota, they’ve stuck together. Ryan moved to Colorado first, and Cory followed a year later—probably just to make sure Ryan wasn’t skiing without him.

Justin “the favorite” Bohmert is one of Cory’s older brothers and was kind enough to ‘voluntarily’ drive Cory to high school every day. He attended the University of Minnesota Duluth—another hockey rival of UND. These days, he lives in Victoria, MN, with his wife Shelly and their twins, Nick and Emma, who keeps them running at full speed (and maybe hiding in the pantry for snacks).

Justin and Shelly’s pride and joy—also known as little Evel Knievel and the Ultimate Girly Girl. When they’re not asleep (rare), Emma is busy ruling the kingdom in her tiara while Nick is off turning any patch of dirt into a monster truck arena. Together, they keep their parents and grandparents delightfully exhausted!

The firstborn Bohmert boy and the tallest of the bunch, Ben mastered the art of being a “big” brother—both literally and figuratively. From pushing Cory’s buttons (and even moving his bed onto the porch) to now teaching and “torturing” 4th graders in Indiana, Ben has never lost his mischievous streak. Luckily, Mim keeps him humble despite her much smaller stature. His greatest joys, though, are Clare—who can outrun him—and Alex—who builds better robots than he does.