A Cousin's Get Together

Where have the last ten days gone? I was sure I'd post at least once more before Christmas. But, alas I was swept away in the last minute preparations for all the celebrating to come.

So, I will report that our Christmas Eve Brunch with our friends was lovely. I didn't take any pictures, but trust me, the company was delightful, the food delicious and the mood merry.

Once again, I'll tell on myself. On the Tuesday before Christmas Jim and I took the bulletin for the Christmas Eve service to the church office, where our dear secretary, Deb, ran 150 copies for us. We brought them home and while I worked on last minute touches for the children's sermon, Jim folded all 150. On Christmas Eve morning, I took one out so that I could talk to our friend, Carl, about his duties for the evening. "When what to my wondering eyes should appear", the bulletin for 2007 all printed and folded. I had printed the wrong bulletin off my computer. Thank heavens, Deb was still at the office and she printed the correct one for us. This time, I folded them myself.

With just that little kink in the plans, the service went off well. It was well attended and almost everyone went down to the fellowship hall for cake. There were also oranges and cracker jacks for the children (a tradition of many years in our church).

Our Christmas was quiet, just as we had planned. We talked to our children, siblings and Jim's mother, watched some episodes of "Big Bang Theory", ate wonderful food and napped.

So, what's all this about a cousin's reunion? Well, just before Christmas I had an email from my cousin, Joan, who I hadn't heard from in many years. To make a long story short, I decided we should all get together with our aunt while I was in Pennsylvania after Christmas. Let me tell you, getting the four sisters, my aunt and myself together was no easy task, but after several date and time changes, we managed to agree on a time and place when the five of us could meet.

Well, the joke was on me, because when I walked into the restaurant there were thirteen people waiting for me. Two of my cousins brought their husbands, my aunt brought her daughter-in-law (who I didn't even know existed), their were four daughters of cousins and one boyfriend, as well as my four cousins, my aunt and me. What a wonderful afternoon we had.

We talked about our mothers, fathers, aunts and uncles. We talked about our grandmothers, brothers and my sister and the cousins who weren't there. We talked about the past the present and the future. We shed some tears for those who are no longer with us, shared the joys of our children's accomplishments, passed around pictures and just generally enjoyed each other.

On top of that, we had good food and great service from the restaurant staff. No one seemed to care that we were a little noisy(okay, boisterous). I think our happiness just naturally spilled over to other tables.

Our Aunt Myrle was so dear. She had a little gift for each of the nieces. Being the oldest grandchild, I was quite spoiled until the others started coming along. My aunt, of course, was one of the best spoilers.

We have made a pact that we will see each other more often. The plan, now, is for a summer picnic and Joan said she's cook. I think that must have been said in a moment of pure insanity. We'll let her think about that for awhile and then maybe we can all offer to bring a dish to pass.

Before I end this epistle of joy, I want to mention the two husbands, Ken and Gary, who ventured to spend the afternoon in the midst of the crazy "Reed Women". You guys are great! Thanks for coming. Jim says he'll surely be there the next time.

The only thing that would have made this day more perfect would have been the presence of the "three sisters", my mom, my Aunt Jessie and my Aunt Letty. Those three ladies did much to add the joy of our growing up years.

Added to our perfect weekend was our stay at our BIL/SIL's home in the woods. All three brothers and partners were together for the first time since Kathy became a part of LaVerne's life. We had lots of laughs and good food too. On top of that, we taught Kathy the family card game. Alas, she didn't have beginner's luck. Carolyn was the big winner. The picture was taken from the upstairs bedroom where Jim and I sleep.

This is probably my last post of 2008. It's been quite a year, made happier for me by you, my blogging buddies. Have a Happy New Year.

~Hippo Hugs~