What does it mean when someone says about relatives once or twice removed?

Question:Hope someone can help me out on this. I sure hope I asked the question right.

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: Hope someone can help me out on this. I sure hope I asked the question right.

A lot of people make the mistake of thinking cousins go back 1st, 2nd, 3rd regardless of the generation they come down from from a common ancestor. That is a fallacy.

Your first cousins children are your first cousins once removed and like the above said, their grandchildren are your first cousin twice removed because they come from a different generation from your common ancestor with them.

Children of first cousins are second cousin to each other since they come from the same generation coming down from a common ancestor.

Have a look at the chart posted below, I am not sure about how this works to be honest with you so I hope this helps you.
http://genealogy.about.com/library/nrela...

The children of my first cousins are my first cousins once removed. The grandchildren of my first cousins are my first cousins twice removed. What it refers to is the generation distance from the original relative.

Second cousins are the secod generation of cousins. My children and my first cousin's children are second cousins. The children of the second cousins are second cousins once removed from my kids, etc.