Family Reunion

If you’ve been reading me all summer then you know that back in June our family took a 3 week sabbatical and headed south. Halfway through that 3 weeks, we attended a family reunion in Mississippi. Oh the memories!

My grandparents have been gone for many years, but three of their four daughters still live in Mississippi. My Mom moved to the midwest nearly 40 years ago, but she hung on tight to her southern roots and raised me to appreciate all things southern (including cornbread and beans, pecans, magnolias and Ole Miss football).

Here are the 4 sisters (my mom is 2nd from the left):

And from those 4 sisters came this crew (we were missing a couple of cousins, so this isn’t the complete family):

Here’s a shot of my mom and my sibs and our families:

But here’s a more realistic look at us:

This is my cousin Laura. She looks just like my Mom. She hosted the reunion at her house. She is my hero:

The reunion was scheduled right before my mom’s 60th birthday, so we took the opportunity to celebrate while we were together:

Someday we’ll talk about the fact that my brother is 36 years old and wearing a Super Dog t-shirt, my sister is wearing a shirt that seriously makes her look prego (suck it in Kimmie, suck it in!) and that I got ripped off on the height genes.

We got my mom a beautiful diamond necklace for her birthday. I wanted to keep it for myself, but I couldn’t get that idea past my siblings:

See these guys? They’re my big cousins. I love them. I’m not sure I know anybody more funny than these two. And in their spare time, they hunt gators and snakes. You think I’m joking but I’m not.

Here’s a shot of Mike the hottie. He refuses to join facebook and I find that maddening:

Of course, no family reunion is complete without a little airtime:

Lots of picture taking:

A fight between loving spouses:

Plenty of time to visit with cousins:

And some chocolate cake to end the day:

It was a memorable weekend with just the right balance of laughter, story telling, good food, and relaxation. There’s so much more I could say about this reunion, like the fact that we all look alike (it’s crazy!), but I will end it on this note: I love this side of my family tree and I’m thankful to be part of such an amazing group of people. Can’t wait until the next time we’re together!