Cousins

This whole cousin thing has me confused. I mean, I know that my first cousins are the children of my parents siblings. Got that one all figured out. My second cousins are . . .

. . . well, that all depends on who you ask. Ha!

Seriously, one site I found states that second cousins are the children of first cousins. For example: my nephew and my cousin's child would be considered second cousins. Got it? But, what type of cousin is my cousin's child to me? Ah, that's the question of the moment, isn't it? Ha!

The child of my first cousin would be a second cousin to my nephew, but would be a first cousin once removed to me. Oy!

But . . . that's only one site I found about cousin relationships. Trust me, you don't want to know about some of the sites I found when I Googled cousin relationhips. Eeeew!

Now, another site indicates that first cousins share grandparents. For example, my cousin Susan and I have the same grandparents, so we're first cousins.

That same site states that second cousins have the same great-grandparents as me, but not the same grandparents. Say what?

To simplify: my grandmother was one of 15 children. Her parents are my great-grandparents. Her parents are also the great-grandparents of her siblings grandchildren. Get it? So, with that logic, the grandchildren of my grandmother's siblings would be my second cousins.

Yeah, it's confusing. Oh, and the removed part of the equation usually indicates there is a difference in generation, i.e., I'm one generation removed from my cousin's child, therefore, that child is my first cousin once removed. OY!

So, as far as I'm concerned, if there's a blood/dna relationship, and you're not an aunt, uncle, parent, sibling, great-grandparent, or whatever, you're, well, a cousin. Enough. Written!