Every year we have a family reunion, shifting responsibility for it among our kids. This year Reed and Dorothy were in charge. Dorothy found a lovely place in Bear Lake. It was our most expensive place yet, but promised to be very nice. As it turned out, it was just being built when we reserved it. It was barely finished when we arrived, so we were just about their first visitors. The place was pretty luxurious. But, like any new place, there were things that could be improved upon. The owners asked for our feedback, so we began listing things as we went through the week. They were little things really, and didn't put much of a dent on our enjoyment.
One of the things I love about our family is that there is little if any contention between families. It makes our gatherings safe and enjoyable. Everyone works to accommodate everyone else. Bear Lake offers a variety of activities; there is shopping, boating, beaching, various places touring and, of course, raspberry milkshakes. Bear Lake is known for them. We made sure to get our fill of them.
Some of the family rented fun stuff to do at the Lake. Some of us toured a nearby cave, which was really interesting. There were lots of formations inside, which were accessed by lots of stairs going up and down throughout. A college student was our tour guide and she knew her stuff. She made it all fun. I must say that we got enough exercise climbing up and down to last us for a week! Here is a shot of the longest set of stairs, which our tour guide ran up; it instilled admiration in us all.
Here we are, just after emerging from the cave. L to R: Timothy, Bruce, Reed, Dorothy, Layne, Jessica (#1), Chris.
Not all of the family attended the reunion this year. Our grandchildren are starting to have families of their own, with increased obligations to inlaws and such. We have decided that we will continue to have our yearly reunions and not worry about who can come and who cannot. We plan to just leave it open for whoever is available to come. This year we were missing some of the older grandkids. But we had fun with the ones who came. Isaiah and Avery brought their sweet little Mercedes, which everyone made a fuss over. They are soon to be moving to New York, to go to school at Cornell. So this will be the last time we see them for awhile. Avery brought her tree yoga equipment. (I don't think it is called tree yoga, but it is done from a tree or pole). She put up the equipment and taught some of the kids some moves. It is pretty fascinating to watch. Here you can see Peyton, inside the fabric that is used for the yoga moves. It might not show, but she is actually in some sort of stretch in this photo.
Pretty interesting, yes? Here are a couple of snapshots of Mercedes; in one of them she is with her grandfather Cliff. Wow, our son-in-law is a grandfather. Our Jessica is holding her in the second picture.
It is wonderful to have babies in the family again. Grandson Scott and his Jessica also came, with their little son, Thomas. What a cutie he is. See what you think. Here he is with his Mom, Jessica (#3).
We had lots of great time to play games and visit. Our balcony gave us a lovely view of Bear Lake, and also a great view of a robin's nest. We watched as mama Robin hunted for food for her three big babies and fed them. It was a treat. By week's end the babies had all wandered out of the nest and flew away.
Perhaps our favorite activity was attending a performance of Beauty and the Beast at the local Pickle Theater. It was amazingly professional. We all loved it. It was fun to learn that the girl who played Belle was engaged to the boy who played the Beast, in real life. Here they are after the performance, with Olivia and Victoria.
Timothy put in his mission papers shortly after his High School graduation this past May. While at the reunion, the call came. We all cheered as he read his call to TEXAS DALLAS! I think he was excited and felt our love and support. Here he is, reading the mission news to us.
No comments:
Post a Comment