Reunion

Hello! I'm back from the land of 10,000 lakes. We had a family reunion on Saturday the 24th at my cousin Lori's house just outside of a little town in MN, right on one of those lakes. We had so, so much fun. Here are the highlights.

Some of the cousins hired a band that specialized in older music, the kind my dad and his siblings would remember. They were also great for letting the more talented family members get up and join them. Here are my dad and brother, Aaron, singing a duet.

I almost teared up watching them. It's been years since I've heard them sing together. That alone would have made the whole day. But that wasn't all - there was also dancing! Dad and I did a Tennessee Waltz. Yes, we know how to do that.

Here's Sierra and family out on the dock. Yes, she's making the loser sign at me. She did apologize, and I said it was ok. What she doesn't know is that I WAS going to will her some pretty good stuff when I die, including an extensive collection of lip gloss. Too bad for Sierra.
There is, at every reunion, this poster of all the cousins' high school graduation pictures, along with our full names and birth date. The camera flash took out my picture, and that's ok. I don't really need my own picture. Loving the cousins' pictures, though.

Family out on the lake. Give a child somewhere to swim, and you've entertained him for a full day.

Of course each family had to pose for a picture. Here's mine. Back row - Barry, Courtney, Shane, Aaron, and then Mom, me, and Dad. Unfortunately Marla couldn't be there. Her family had other stuff going on at the same time. Maybe I'll find a way to cut her out of another picture and paste her into this one...? Then it will be complete.

Later in the afternoon we took a bus tour! Lori's place is close to the farm where dad and his siblings grew up, so we took a tour of their old stomping grounds, including my grandparents dairy farm. The family doesn't own the farm anymore, but the people who live there now are pretty good about letting us invade their property and take pictures every few years. Here are dad and I on the bus.

We stopped at a few places along the way, and either Dad or one of his siblings told stories from their childhood. They grew up in a different world, and it's fascinating to hear them talk about it. I loved that.

Here's something else I love - my great-grandparents house. They came to Minnesota from Norway in the late 1800s and settle on a farm near Underwood, not far from Dad's home town. They raised 12 children, the youngest being our Grandpa Olaf. A few years ago, the house was moved from it's foundation onto a small historic park in Dalton. It's all set up like an actual historic site! Isn't that great? The house wasn't open on the day we were there, but we did take lots of pictures on porch. Here are Dad and his siblings.
Those are the highlights of a wonderful day. It was the kind of day that made me smile for days after. I keep thinking back on it and saying, "Wow, that was so much fun." It's a great family, and a great place, to be a part of.

One last picture, look how pretty my niece Amalia Grace is. So pretty.