Family Reunion

We spent this weekend in PA visiting Bob's family. They had their annual family reunion on Saturday. We've been going for the past 5 years, I believe, and we have really enjoyed getting to know members of the other branches of Bob's dad's family. I still really would like to bring a piece of posterboard with the names of the 6 siblings (Bob's dad and his brothers and sisters) so everyone could fill in their names and how they fit! Our next one is going to be in 2 years at the house of Bob's brother Paul. Maybe I'll have my act together by then and remember the posterboard idea. I'm remembering a lot more names, but I still get confused as to which branch some people belong to!

This year we had a smaller turnout than previously, but it was still a very good time, with plenty of good food and conversation. Bob's sister Jane and her husband Terry were in charge this year, and they did a great job! They had it at a public park really close to the house of Bob's parents. Bob spent a lot of time growing up at this place--it has ball fields, a big grassy area, playgrounds, a swimming pool, a skating rink--it has it all! We had a nice pavilion for the picnic. The weather was noticeably cooler and less humid than in Northern VA, and there was a lovely breeze all day, so it was a nice day for a picnic! We were all feeling the heat by the end of the day, though, LOL.

We always play a game sort of like musical chairs or something, where you pass a wrapped present up and down the line, and when the music stops, that person unwraps one layer of paper. You keep on doing this until every layer is unwrapped, and the lucky person who unwraps the last layer gets whatever is in the box! Bob won last year, and he won a softside cooler that we really like. This year Jane had t-shirts embroidered with "B__ Family Reunion 2010". The main reason I'm posting this picture is because the girl opening the present looks so much like I used to! When I first was uploading the pictures on my computer, I saw the picture and though, "Who took a picture of me?" And then I remembered that I don't wear my hair back like that anymore, and I have gained weight, and I was wearing a dark pink shirt . . . It gave me a start though! A view of my younger self in profile! The girl, Holly, is the newest member of the family, having married into it in May.

Here we have Bob's brother-in-law Wally getting the annual auction off to a rousing start! Everyone brings unwanted stuff and people bid on things in an effort to raise money to cover the reunion. Don't scoff--this made close to $120 this year! Plus, it's a lot of fun. Jane's husband Terry gave Faith a dollar, and she "bid" on 2 purses, which she then won. I had seen them but assumed Anna and Grace wouldn't be interested because they weren't pink and frilly. Ha! Shows what I know! They spent the rest of the day with their purses (poor Faith didn't stand a chance, LOL). I think they like them even better--these clearly look like grown-up purses! We also won some boxes of pencils, which we were all inordinately thrilled about. Every year right before standardized testing time, we have to run out to Walmart because we don't have any #2 pencils. We usually use mechanical pencils on a day-to-day basis, and Faith loves chewing off erasers of the regular pencils she finds around. So hopefully we can keep these pencils away from Faith, and we'll be all set for a few future testing dates! We also picked up several candles, a nice bowl that will be great for potlucks and Bible study desserts, and a few other odds and ends. And all for bargain prices!

Bob finished out the auction, and he did a great job. The boys were surprised at how well he did, but I knew he'd be naturally good, LOL. He's funny and a good salesman!

I have other pictures from Aunt Peggy, and I'm hoping to get some more from at least Ann. Then I'm going to put them all on snapfish so everyone at the reunion can see them and make prints if they want to.

The kdis played a bunch of games--soccer, kickball, races, and other games. They were so hot and tired when it was all over! Bob gets the "Good Effort" award for rounding out the soccer teams and being goalie in his flip flops.

Afterwards, we went back to our hotel. Faith was asleep before we left the parking lot! She revived enough to swim in the hotel pool before we went to bed. Unfortunately she was still tired, and terefore clumsier than usual. She fell trying to climb up on the fold-out sofabed. She got quite a raspberry on her chin, and she cut her lip also. I had quite the time getting that to stop bleeding, and the room looked like a crime scene with bloody washclothes and pillowcases all around! The raspberry is still there, and her lip is still a bit swollen, but neither thing seems to have bothered her again!

Sunday morning everyone swam again while I showered. Then we headed over to Bob's parents' house to visit for awhile. Most of the rest of his family had gone to an amusement park in Pittsburgh for the day, but we knew that would be WAY too much for all the kiddos, especially the girls. It was nice just to relax and hang out. The boys played cards with Bob's dad, who taught them a new game. The girls played very nicely all together with toys inside, and I enjoyed reading their newspaper, since our subscription to the Washington Times has finally run out, and they raised the rates outrageously on us! I was admiring all their tomatoes when I remembered that I had wanted to take a picture of the shed all the kids bought for them back in March. It's really nice, although I do not have a photographer's eye--if I had, I would have taken the picture more from the side so you could also see the row of windows along the side. It's really a nice shed, and I think Bob's dad is really enjoying it.

After we visited and ate lunch, it was time to pack up and head home. For this short trip, we stopped 2 times! We were trying to use up some McDonald's coupons that we had bought for $1 back in March, so we stopped 2 different McDonalds. The coupons were all for free stuff for kids under 12, so we got several free hamburgers, apple juices, apple dippers, and ice cream cones. Eleven total free things, and we used up all the rest of the coupons! Woo hoo!