Family Reunion

After my sister’s family came to visit in late July, we all headed to NE at the beginning of August for several days.  My brother’s family met us there too and we enjoyed some time being ALL together.  

My parent’s 50th wedding anniversary was February 5th, but we celebrated during this trip home.  We also celebrated Dad’s upcoming 70th birthday.  The only thing Mom & Dad wanted for their anniversary was to have our three families come home at the same time.  No small feat since we’re all pretty spread out.  August worked the best for Sheila & Martin to come, so that’s when we planned our get-together.  

Mom and Dad arranged for Brian’s family and our family to stay at a beautiful lake house at Lake McConaughy.  It was such a gift and we so appreciated it.  We enjoyed lots of meals altogether in town at mom and dad’s, but it was nice to have a place at the lake for all the kids to roam around.  

One morning, James, Anna, Jackson, Emerson, Ryland, & Eve all went on a hike.  If you look very closely at the middle of the picture, you’ll see all of them standing on a distant hill.  

We had family pictures taken while we were all home.  With 16 of us, Larry, the photographer is becoming an expert on getting everyone situated and smiling.  

In the end, mom and dad ended up with an anniversary party too.  Once word got out that our three families were coming home, a good number of extended family members decided to come as well.  We had a wonderful time together and so enjoyed seeing family we hadn’t seen in some time.  

Dad and his siblings – Bonnie, Ken, Don & Connie

We enjoyed one day at Lake McConaughy with my brother, sister, and their families.  The three of us grew up with the lake being a regular part of our weekends in the summer.  We played on the beach, went for boat rides, and when we got older, we learned to drive the boat, ride on inflatables pulled behind the boat, and water ski.  In high school, we spent time there regularly with friends, too.  Now that we’re all grown, with families, we’ve never been to the lake altogether, so this was a priority for us on this trip.  Unfortunately, the weather didn’t cooperate and we had to cancel our boat rental.  But we still enjoyed a couple of outings down to the water.  

We also celebrated Sienna’s 8th birthday while in NE!  Lindsay & Anna walked the field around the lake house and collected a wildflower bouquet for Sienna.  The cousins drew cards for her.  We spent the day at the lake which she loved.  G’ma & Pa cooked a feast for everyone at their house for dinner; including one of G’ma’s signature angel food birthday cakes.  And the day concluded with a girl-cousin sleepover at the lake house.  Eve did Sienna & Anna’s hair, they watched a movie, ate popcorn, and went to bed later than usual.  Such a fun time for these girls to enjoy together.  

We are so thankful for the wonderful time in Nebraska this summer enjoying time with family!

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