We haven’t been to this gathering for 5 years, so there were a lot more kids (and people who I did not know) than the last time we went. The whole event started on Friday night with singing at the church and homemade ice cream, but we skipped that part. We drove the 1½ hours north on Saturday morning and arrived just in time for the auction.
Each year, everyone brings things to donate to the auction. Some things are homemade, like this yummy candy train that my SIL, J, made.
One of B’s uncles is a professional auctioneer, so this is a true-to-life auction! All the money goes into an account that is used to help the kids go to college and to help anyone who finds themselves in need (medical, disaster, etc.). There were a ton of things in the auction this year, but as usual, nothing was as cool as what our family brought.
J made the train shown above, C made this yummy yummy homemade snickers candy, I made toffee (your mom’s recipe, Shell!), MIL made pillow cases for each holiday, and B made a diorama of the grandparents farm, circa 1953. Our items also fetched the most money! B’s diorama sold for the highest amount – and a drawing he made 5 years ago was the highest then, too!
And, even though my SIL, C, made the snickers candy, I won it…It was so good! And J had made this cute box for it to go in...I’ll update this post later with a picture of it.
After the auction, we ate lunch and then headed out for the annual piñata. MIL had to get in on the action.
It was a strong piñata (made by one of B’s aunts), and it took quite a bit to get it to break open, and then all 30 kids rushed out to stake their claim.
We had a good day, and I’m glad we went. We were exhausted and ready to head home by mid afternoon, so we hit the road home so we could take naps before dinner with both our families that night.
Here are a few more pictures from the reunion. Here’s B with his cousin (in the blue shirt), and my cousin, Little Man, who we’re trying to convince to live with us next year.
Here’s a picture of all the Sisters-in-Law. It was so fun to hang out all together – that only happens a couple times a year.
And here’s B muggin’ with our niece, Sweetie.
7 comments:
i love that idea of having an account for the kids, emergencies, etc! what a great thing for a family to do!!
that candy train is too cool! and it looks like a good time was had by all. My mom is the youngest of 10 and we used to have the greatest family reunions and Christmas parties but they've kinda slowed down now that we've lost a few and everyone's getting older.
That is a wonderful thing for a family to do for each other! Glad you and everyone else had such a great time.
I had a great time, and was glad you guys got to come! :-) Could I have that toffee recipie??? Pretty Please???
Sounds like so much fun! We have lots of reunions around here but they are much smaller and not near as organized.
Wow! Your extended family sounds so neat! I have lots of extended family as well (mom was youngest of 13, dad middle of 8) and when we were kids we used to get together every Christmas. Since my grandparents died (1995 & 1997) we just don't get together anymore. It's sad.
Anyway, I wanted to let you know, I’m starting a Pay It Forward book exchange! I’ll be kicking it off with a book giveaway on Monday, 9 July, so please stop by and enter to win!
I wish we had family reunions that lasted a weekend and had events like that. All we do is get together for potluck and everyone leaves as soon as the meal is over.
Mama Bear
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