More pics 7-26-08

These pictures are mostly of Mine and Lori's goof balls with cousin Steph pulled into one!

Aunt Millie's party at the Reunion 7-26-08

This first picture is of Linda Thompson, Sydney, Chelsea, Jake and their Mom Stephanie Thompson.

It is amazing how fast time is passing nowadays! I just noticed today’s date while posting this group of pictures from the family reunion. Today was my Mother’s birthday and tomorrow it will be the 18th year since she died. Mom was part of the gift my sister Lori and I gave to Aunt Millie.

Aunt Millie’s birthday is actually in October and she’ll be 80! As most all the extended family was together for the last time in who knows how long, it was decided that the reunion would honor her birthday. It is amazing what that woman can still get done in the kitchen!

Our gift to Aunt Millie was a photo group. The top photo is of my Mom and us two girls in October 1963 when we went to live with Aunt Millie’s family after our Dad was killed. The next photo is of Lori and her two girls, Lindsay and Jaclyn and the bottom photo is of my whole crew from Disneyland last year. It turned out to be a photo group of Mom’s legacy. Mom was loved by everyone and has been sorely missed. It wasn’t our intention but the gift made everyone who knew Mom cry.

It was a great birthday dinner and the cake was wonderful and so were all the people.

Note

I'm posting the reunion photos in clumps so be sure and scroll down to check that you haven't missed anything!

Reunion part 2 7-26-08

I thought I might try explaining the familial connections of most of the people in these pictures. I am only including the branches that appear here or I would have you totally confused!

Aunt Millie is my mother’s oldest sister. She was married to Dick Vera and had three children: Michael, Linda and Patricia. Aunt Millie later divorced Uncle Dick and married Marty Helton and they had a daughter named Cindy.

Cousin Mike’s lady friend is named Linda. Cousin Linda married Don Thompson and had two children Kim and Scott. Kim's only and Scott's first born weren't here. Scott married Stephanie and they have four children: Jake, Chelsea, Sidney and Lyneke. Cousin Pat married Mike Corral and their daughter Stephanie Lee was here with her husband Marcus, son Anthony and daughter Mara. Mike and Pat's son Keith and his family couldn't be here either.
My younger sister Lori, her oldest daughter Lindsay and other daughter Jaclyn were out from Ohio. Both mine and Larry’s daughters were here with their families: our oldest Andrea, her son Ian and new husband Will; Michelle, her husband Darel and their son Seth.

There are various other family members and friends sprinkled around in the group…if they are prominent in a picture I will try to remember to name them. This family has a lot of duplicate names; I’ll try to keep you straight!

Keep scrolling down for the names in the pics.

1. Anthony, Stephanie, Mara & Marcus

2. Cindy & Marty Helton

3. Stephanie Thompson and Chelsea

4. Scott, Stephanie and Lyneke

5. Pat & Mike Corral & Anthony

6. Linda Thompson and Kim

7. Don Thompson

8. Tommy (Marty's brother) & Marty

9 Anthony and Stephanie in pool

10. Lori, Mike Vera and Lindsay

11. Linda and Mike Vera

2008 reunion pics 7-26-08

Trying to figure out how to get these pictures of the reunion posted so that they make sense to people who were not there is a challenge. Also, because I want you to be able to see the people well, I have to crop and "fix" most of the pictures...more time.

The first picture is Will--Andrea's Husband, Michelle and her husband Darel, you'll see the guys again in a picture down below with Larry.

Then below is Andrea. Then there is Jaclyn, Lindsay and me...Valerie...Jaclyn is my sister Lori's youngest and Lindsay is her oldest. You should be able to figure out who is who in the rest of these pictures....all the same people.

Wine Tasting 7/25/06

Today we got to see my sister Lori and nieces Lindsay and Jaclyn who live in Ohio and who we haven't seen since last years reunion. Our cousin Pat took us wine tasting. Of course there was the usual eating, visiting and games...another fun day.

more 7-25-08

Tired, bloated and sore! Another busy day, it may be after the reunion before I get any pictures posted...it is too late by the time we get home. I just thought I would pop on this picture of Larry's Cobblers and a beautiful daylily. My sister and her girls arrived safely just way later than planned which made the 3 hour drive from the airport more of a trial. More cousins showed up today, tomorrow will be busy!

Pre Family Reunion 7-24-08

We have been visiting with family and grazing the last four days. This Saturday is the actual day of the Family Reunion, hosted as always at my Aunt Millie and Uncle Marty’s place. Their backyard is like a wooded campground and two of my older cousins and their husbands, another Aunt and Uncle and then a couple that are family friends all have their very large motor homes and one 5th wheel parked down in the trees.

So since they arrived on Monday and they are all wonderful cooks and do the group culinary potlucks we have been eating wonderful food! I have been the souse-chef, dish-washer and runner because I am not the “pack” cooking participant that this group all has been a part of for years. Larry and I have been lone wolves and because we are family they tolerate us and allow us into their pack every so often…so far no one has gone for our throats…tee hee! Food is the ticket, I have made brownies and Larry has made three fruit cobblers…yes, LARRY made the cobblers and his three berry cobbler was a HUGE success. Hey, we know our place in the pack!

The weather has been pleasant for the most part; one day was cloudy and cold and as we are outside all day nice weather makes for a more enjoyable event! There is a lot of visiting, reminiscing, catching up and tall stories (otherwise known as “bullshit”). They play a lot of a dice game called Zonk and dominos.

More family will be arriving tomorrow and then all the rest show up on Saturday for the big event and this year the Queen of the reunion is Aunt Millie, we will be celebrating her 80th birthday this year.

My sister Lori and her two girls are currently on a plane heading for Portland from Ohio. They were delayed a couple hours because of weather in Houston due to hurricane Dolly. They had to cool their heels a bit in Lafayette, Louisiana before they could land in Houston. Our girls will show up with their families on Saturday and the party is on! This event has been great for our family because it is often the only time we ever see most of our extended family.

We have been having a lot of fun and you won’t see too many stories here because: What happens in the Family stays in the Family! SMILE! I’m not gonna be STUPID!

Drive to the Coast 7-18-08

Today was a field trip day. We drove over to Bandon on the coast. It was a lovely clear day. The roadways were flanked by huge banks of pink wild sweet peas and roses. I would have liked to get some close-ups but as always there either wasn’t a good place to stop or the wind was blurring them.

In Bandon there is a drug store that carries a few things that I can’t find anywhere else…a line of aromatherapy cleaners for the home and aromatherapy bubble bath. I found then last fall when we were there, so I made a point of stocking up today.

Then we went for a walk on the beach at Bullards Beach State Park. There was a very strong wind out of the north so we needed our coats. The ocean was very dark and dirty looking today and the wind was really causing the waves to roll south, we have never seen the water quite that dark before. There were people horseback riding and people riding the wind and waves! Nary a cloud to be seen!

After I unloaded my usual collection of rocks onto the floor of the truck and we de-sanded our shoes we went back into Bandon and had a great lunch of beer battered fish and chips, then headed back “home”. We stopped in Roseburg for fuel…after taking the wrong turn and ending up on the highway heading south until we could get turned back around…diesel has gone up again. I made a stop at the mall to exchange something and then we landed back at the trailer.

It makes us cranky that we have to adjust to how much it costs in fuel to take a drive nowadays. We are extremely grateful that we made our trip back east a couple years ago…even then we thought the fuel was high and now it is double what it was then…amazing.

Back in Sutherlin, Oregon 7-10-08

On Tuesday we hit the road from Albany to our current location, the Escapee Park in Sutherlin, Oregon. It was only 103 miles and less than two hour south of Albany on I-5. We will be here for a month; my family reunion is in two weeks at my Aunt and Uncles in Roseburg.

With the price of fuel people are staying longer in places. The park we just left was talking about making changes in how many longer term versus short term sites they have right now, because so many are staying a month at a time and longer. Here, there were only four month long sites taken last year and this year right now there are over 30, the park is the fullest we have ever seen it and there are more lease holders in residence this year too…they aren’t traveling.

Monthly rates are the way to go at parks that give monthly rates…big savings. This is a membership park, but the monthly rate is $300 plus electricity, so we don’t pay for cable, garbage or water and the sites here are large…55’ x 70’. The park is surrounded by trees and has a lot of streets to walk on, there are 206 sites.

This last picture is of the gang that hangs out under the trees on our lot in the heat of the afternoon. They are the size of large cats and roam all over along with the deer and turkeys…the feathered kind. We lucked out this time with these two big trees; they are on the west side of the trailer so we get afternoon shade, not a lot of big trees on sites here.


The weather here is warmer over all from where we just came from, the day doesn’t start with cloud cover that has to burn off like has been happening up in Albany and it isn’t as humid here.

I may just do a weekly entry for now to keep you updated…but as has happened in the past could be sooner, could be longer….