Family reunions should be full of fun, festivities and maybe even a little fear-with a capital "F".
And I should know cuz it was the annual family reunion this weekend.
Since Mom and Dad had nine kids, our family can seem like an entire village - that's why we had to rent an entire camp to get together.
Luckily, there were no talks about old emotional wounds, family fights or bickering. It was a weekend filled with sports, eating, and celebrating what family really means: being there to share, to care, and to dare . . . one another to slide down the side of a mountain on a thin fiberglass make-shift slide.
How crazy can we be . . . ? I guess pretty crazy - because even an old chubby woman like me took the dare. Of course I zoomed down the slide faster than most - it's all that extra weight in the rear - literally - that got me going.
What else could we have done? Well besides roasting marshmallows and making smores,
most of us rode that water slide down the side of the mountain-and I bet people in town could hear me scream like a baby - lost my sunglasses at the bottom of the pond, because I was so nervous about riding the slide, I forgot I had them on - then we went canoeing and kayaking,
wakeboarding,
innertubing,
swimming, going for boatrides
watching wildlife roam around our camp,
having friends share in the fun
and more. It was a great way to spend a weekend.
Some family members didn't make it, for whatever reason, but the ones who did make it - made it a blast!
We all took turns making meals and cleaning up.
With about 50 people there was a lot to do and some things we never got to do. Of course the horseshoes were fun, but I missed out on the archery, putt-putt golf and volleyball. Can't do it all-but there's always next year.
So, do you have family reunions? What's the best part of the experience? Any tips for next year?