A FAMILY GATHERING

This past weekend we had a family gathering and celebrated 5 birthdays that were happening within this first week of April. My brother, sister and I were all together with our Mother who turns 94 today.

My brother and his wife had all of their children and their granddaughter at this family gathering. My sister had her daughter-in-law with two grandchildren and I had Son #4 with his two children here. We had five little ones between the ages of 8 months and four years old. Our two-year-old (almost three) granddaughter came over to our house before the other children appeared on Sunday morning and was disappointed that they were not here. She said she wanted her cousins here because "my cousins are crazy about me!" My husband and I had to quietly stifle our laughs.

Here are a few pictures of our many activities over the several days that we were together:

Cousins getting to know each other

My family with my mother at the Birthday Party

My sister-in-law with the youngest of the cousins.

The cousins on an Easter Egg Hunt.

My hubby entertaining Miss Ella Bella like he did our boys a "few" years back.

Our lovely neighbor (on the right) provided a pedicab ride

My brother helped entertain the cousins in our backyard

And we ate every time we turned around. Yum! Mexican food!

We had a wonderful time and the weekend was over before we knew it. I am so grateful for the times that we celebrate together.

A MEETING OF THE COUSINS

On New Year's Eve we gathered with Son #2 (also known as WB) and Son #4 and their families to celebrate WB's birthday. It was also a gathering of the cousins who had a wonderful time playing together and getting to know one another a little better!



We shared a birthday dinner with WB at a very nice restaurant and Grandmommy read to Little One while the big girl cousins had a chance to sit together.













Daughter-in-law, Kara, made WB's delicious carrot cake from scratch and we all enjoyed having a piece. I probably need that recipe for a cake for hubby--his birthday is next and he keeps talking about how good it was!



During our time together, Miss Ella Bella discovered the piano and Little One discovered her pockets!

We had a wonderful time visiting, watching the children play, taking LOTS of pictures, and celebrating a birthday and the beginning of a new year. Happy New Year to all!

Busy Days!

The past weekend went by in a flash! On Saturday and Sunday I helped with a Story Circle Writing From Life workshop. It was a wonderful experience with about 20 participants exploring "the women we were," "the women we are," and "the women we hope to be." We also learned more about writing Legacy Statements or Ethical Wills. Some recommended sites for more about writing Legacy Statements can be found at http://www.ethicalwill.com/examples.html and http://www.yourethicalwill.com/.

Sunday evening we had a neighborhood gathering and birthday party for one of our neighbors. It was a beautiful evening and we had wonderful potluck food and a great time visiting. On the left is a picture of the "birthday boy" with a marvelous cake that his daughter and wife made for him!

We tried for a group neighborhood picture and it was interesting and challenging as we tried to get that many people still and paying attention at the same time.

And, finally, our big buck came in for a bit of food this morning. He was very rude because he used those horns to run off all the females who were also heading in for a late meal. The ladies did not argue with him much, except Bossy Mama, and she got poked in the side. She only tried to eat with him once and then moved on.

THANKFUL THURSDAY

Today is my birthday and I am thankful that my parents allowed me to be born on their 4th wedding anniversary, lo, those many years ago today. That always made for a nice 4th of July celebration for our whole family when I was growing up. We lived in a small town, so the 3rd of July was usually a combined celebration of my parents' anniversary and a celebration of my birthday. In the evening, as soon as it began to get dark, Daddy took us out to a fireworks stand and bought Roman candles, firecrackers, snakes and sparklers. We then drove out to a dirt road and had our own fireworks display. My brother particularly liked the firecrackers and my sister and I loved the snakes and sparklers. Daddy usually helped us shoot off the Roman candles.

Our family gatherings around the 4th of July have continued and some of our family always tries to get together and celebrate birthdays since we now have a granddaughter born on the 4th of July and a daughter-in-law born on the 6th of July. It seems like we have now moved into celebrating the first week of July as Birthday Week for our family members who can be together. This year we will journey to the Texas Panhandle and celebrate with family gathered there. Fun!

Miss Ella Bella Is Two Today

We went to Miss Ella Bella's party to celebrate her second birthday on Saturday. She had a great time with some of her friends at a play gym for her party. She played in the rubber pit with her dad. She was fearless in climbing up the wall and loved running and running.


She conned her granddad into helping her put the basketball through the hoop and she did a front roll for us.

Miss Ella Bella had a cookie birthday "cake" and then enjoyed opening her presents.

I think she had a very nice birthday. Afterwards we went to their house and helped her play with a few of her presents; saw the nicely decorated room for baby brother, Colton, who is due in August; ate dinner together; and then we returned home that evening. A wonderful day.

Quirk #4 - Sleeping Late

4. I LOVE to sleep late (about 7:00) on weekends!


No pictures this time! But I do look forward to sleeping late on weekends and then getting up leisurely, going for a neighborhood walk and then back home for breakfast. The pace is slower on those mornings and my approach to the day is more relaxed than it is on weekdays.


However, tomorrow is Saturday and we will get up early, load up birthday presents and goodies and drive to Son #4's to help celebrate Miss Ella Bella's 2nd birthday. No sleeping late and leisurely day, but it is so worth it to get to spend more time with family!

Now it is your turn: write about the joys of sleeping late and leisurely days. Or take a turn at writing about spending time with family.

A Birthday Girl

A wonderful thing about our family is that we believe in family get-togethers that help us stay in touch with each other in a wonderfully refreshing way. This past weekend my brother and his wife came to stay with us and help celebrate their granddaughter's second birthday. We had three fun-filled days of activity--eating, visiting, and watching Bela enjoy her two-year-old self!

My brother certainly enjoyed holding Bela, as you can tell from the big grin on his face, and playing with her during a breakfast gathering of family.

My brother's wife with the Birthday Girl. Thankfully my brother's wife is feeling much better and is now able to attend these family gatherings after being "grounded" for a whole year! We were so glad to have her with us again for the fun and festivities.

The Birthday Girl certainly enjoyed her birthday cake at the outdoor birthday party. The weather was gorgeous over the weekend and very conducive to outdoor gatherings with cool days, no wind, and little humidity. More good food and that delicious cake to finish up with! We all probably won't need to eat again for a week!

We tried a family portrait of my brother, his wife and their oldest son's family. About ten pictures later I finally got one with everyone's eyes open.

And no gathering is ever complete at our house without watching Bossy Mama and her girls come in to eat. Bela really enjoyed the deer and was amazingly quiet while watching them. Several times she put her fingers up to her lips and told us "Shhh!" to remind us to be quiet also. And one last picture of Bela sitting quietly in my lap outside for a very long time--just watching those deer eat.

Thanks to all who came and made the weekend so much fun!

Mother's Birthday

Mother is 93 today. We had a little party for her and she seemed to have a great time.

My brother's son came with Bela to help Great-Gram celebrate her birthday.

It has been a beautiful day for her with presents, cards, balloons, candy, and flowers. Thanks to all who helped make her birthday a happy one.

A Great Family Gathering!

Over the weekend about 25 of our family members gathered at the beach for Little One's first birthday celebration! Everyone had a marvelous time, the weather was fabulous, and the time together was way too short. Here are a few pictures of the fun and festivities.

Little One enjoying her first birthday cupcake--to the fullest!

My sister's granddaughter also enjoyed her cupcake!

Little One grinning at her cousin as they check one another out. El is not too sure...

Mom and Soph help Little One with lots of presents. Son #2 and Son #1 and "friend" and Hubby with "friend."

Sister-in-law with her son visit with Kara, her parents and two of her children.More cousins, posing and playing with each other.

What fun we had!