Family Reunion

We had a family reunion back in July. July 4th, actually. It was so much fun. I had seen my cousins for the first time in over thirty years back at Thanksgiving and had the privilege of seeing them again at the reunion. They are so much fun and I love them very much. There was a lot of silliness going on with these glasses. I'm pretty sure there were at least fifteen of us that took pictures with them on. lol This is my cousin Gary and my little cousin.

Bruce enjoyed playing Corn Hole and Horseshoes.

My cousin Steve.

The reunion was at my uncle's house. His land is surrounded by gorgeous mountains. It was lovely.

My mom and her siblings. It was so good seeing my Aunts and Uncle. And boy did they ever cook up some food!! There was so much food, it was like Maw Maw was alive again. They all learned to cook just like her!

It was wonderful being with the family for the day and I hope we get to see them again soon. There were about thirty of us there. I love them all and pray for them.

Family Reunion

We went to our family reunion Saturday night. This was Bruce's mother's side of the family. We had a really good time. We always have a good time.
These are the siblings and their spouses. There are a couple of precious faces that have gone on to Heaven and we miss them very much. Uncle Larry, Uncle Joe, and my precious father-in-law, Pete. Although we missed them at this reunion, there will be a great reunion one fine day!

A lot of work goes into this reunion and I want to publicly thank those that put so much effort and love into planning it and putting it together. The food is always wonderful, the decorations are always lovely, and the love is always pouring over. Thank you, to each person that gave so much time putting it together.

There were several people that could not make it this year and we missed seeing them. Lord willing we'll see them next year.

Aunt Sylvia asked us to sing something. This year I wanted to sing something in memory of Bruce's grandmother. I never did get to meet her, but I have a feeling we would have been close. When I hear the song, I Still Wanna Go To Grandma's House for Christmas I think of her, even though we never met, because of how Bruce and his family talk about how she loved the Christmas season and having all her family gathered around her. So I did sing that song. But the second song....oh my goodness....that was a disaster. We started out the song, Heirloom, and I forgot the words a few lines into the first verse. So we started over. I made it through to the second verse this time, before my brain totally gave out. I was drawing a blank. I mean, I've only sung that song a few dozen times, right? Needless to say we scratched that one and I ended up singing The Greatest Christmas Tree again. Which is fine. Maybe the Lord just wanted that song to be sung, telling of the cross and the greatest gift that was given to the world. So it's ok. I'll sing Heirloom next year (Lord willing). And I'll make sure to have my words written down! :)
We had a great time and I love every. single. one of you!

~~PS~~ Thank you, Michelle, for contributing these beautiful pics.

Weekend Happenings

This weekend was a busy weekend.  Of course every weekend through the month of December has us bustling around like busy little bees!

Thursday we celebrated Bruce's 40th birthday.  We had a lot of fun.  A little picking on him for turning forty, but he left for work later that night with a big smile on his face.  We love him so much!! 

The supper turned out great!  And the cake was mucho-delish!!  My mother-in-law, my parents, and Kelsey joined us for supper. 

Bruce was outside when we took the group pic.  Funny...his birthday and yet he missed the group photo.  But that's ok.  I took one with him.  :D

Ain't he purdy?

I had a calendar made for his birthday.  Each month was a picture of him eating somewhere around town.  It was really funny and he seemed to get a kick out of it.  We all did, actually. 

He got money from his mom, which he put towards a set of golf clubs he found.  And my parents gave him new jammies and some other personal items.  :)

The kids and I had a special something for him also.  They told some "My dad is so old..." jokes and I read a poem I wrote for him.  I have videos of both of those and I'll share those later.

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Friday night we kept our usual date night while the kids had their Sunday School Christmas parties.  Harrison was so excited about his party all day Friday, he was about to bust!!  Daddy and Brother Lemons, Harrison's SS teachers, said he was bouncing off the walls at the party.  When he got home he passed out cold, sitting up on the couch.  So cute! 

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Saturday night we had a great time at the Baker family reunion.  This was a good group shot, but there were so many that didn't make it and so many that left before this picture was taken.  But it still turned out great!

We took advantage of the Christmas tree in the foyer of the church.  I liked this pic of my babies! 

Kelsey came to the reunion with us too. 

Kelsey talked Justin into doing a Charlie's Angels pose with her and Hannah.  Look at his face.  He was cracking up!

Kelsey and Hannah

This is Bruce's cousin, Adam, and his wife, Jessica.  This time next year, we'll have another little Baker at the reunion. 

Aunt Sylvia had a picture video made for everyone.  She put a copy of it in and we watched it together.  It was so nice and there were a lot of fun pictures on there.

Every year I take a picture of these two guys!  The same pose...every year.  We'll be watching little man grow up in pictures on his daddy's lap.  :)

Me and my darlin'!

Bruce and I did The Greatest Christmas Tree.  I wanted Hannah to video it for you, but she ended up just taking pictures. 

And these are the Baker siblings with their spouses.  We missed Bruce's daddy, Uncle Larry, and Uncle Joe.  All have gone home to Jesus.  And of course we missed Bruce's cousin, Ricky, who also went on to Heaven this year. 

It's going to be a busy week with another busy weekend ahead of us.  I'm looking forward to it!

Family Reunions

It's been an interesting weekend. Friday night our children were scattered to the four winds. Or at least three of the four winds. So Bruce and I hung around here reading, napping, and playing on the computer. It was a quiet evening, to say the least. He was exhausted from third shift and not sleeping all day and I was not feeling well. Still not.

Saturday we went to the Livermush Festival. You can click here to see pictures of that. We checked on Hannah, who was babysitting for the Douglass children while their parents were on the Sunday school bike trip. They are such cuties. Then we went to Mi Pueblito's for supper. Since my stomach was already not feeling great...or even good for that matter...I soon felt that the meal there was a mistake. One I paid for dearly all. night. long.

When we got home from eating at Mi Pub's, Justin had left a note for us that he had gone to help my mom take my dad to the hospital. He was in severe pain. They admitted him and have run several tests, but have found nothing so far. The pain started in the lower left back and began to move to the front. They put him on morphine and have run a CAT, done x-rays, ultrasounds, and today they ran a scope down his throat. We won't know anything until tomorrow. Please pray for him. And for my mom too. She, herself, has been very sick with a bad case of bronchitis. I've been worried about her being up at the hospital with all those germs. She really does not need to be around that right now.

I went to bed much earlier Saturday night than usual. But got up early to prepare something for our family reunion that afternoon. Kelsey joined us and it was good to see our family.

A Family Reunion....

is a time to remember.

A time to laugh....

a time to celebrate.

A time to share old stories...

and make new memories.

A time to see each other...

in the faces all around us.

And find reflections of ourselves...

in hearts both young and old.

A reunion is a coming together...

that strengthens the bond of family

And reminds us of the gift...

of belonging.

A chance to share our history...

a reason to celebrate our past.

A time to welcome our future...

as a family.