Family Reunion

We just got back from our biannual family reunion (is that right? every other year? every two years? same thing, i think). We were at a big camp near Mt. Hood and it was just beautiful. The weather was great up until the last day and it was so relaxing to be out in the trees. and mosquitoes. and spiders. and mice. yikes. Seriously though, I had a great time, even with being in charge of a few activities and singing a solo in the talent show. Turns out it's a little tricky to sing up high when you're nervous. Who knew?

Here's the highlights of the week:

-while watching a PIG match, the little girls were getting their nails painted and i totally squeezed in and got mine done also.

nothing like a little glitter to brighten up the woods, right?

-my uncle hosted a crossword competition and even though my grandma killed us all, i still managed to finish my first crossword puzzle ever without resorting to cheating online. move over, sudoku. crosswords kind of became one of the themes of the week. our family t-shirts had everyone's name in a crossword on the back and for an activity, two of my cousins made a crossword with clues for every single person in our family. translation: 141 clues. we're pretty intense. we also watched the 2006 documentary, Wordplay, about The New York Times Crossword Editor Will Shortz and the annual crossword competition.


i am being 100% serious when i tell you it was suspenseful, funny, moving, and gripping.

-i did not have any accidents on my bike while riding around camp. unlike that one vacation where i got scared going down a hill too fast and put on the brakes so hard i flipped over the handlebars. whoops.

-i went on my very first official run that wasn't around a track or in a p.e. class. my uncle's an ironman and all-around awesome athlete and he and my aunt (also an amazing athlete) hosted early morning runs this year. i signed up and was ready to go at the unholy hour of 7:45. i chose the slightly easier run with my aunt and only thought my lungs were going to explode twice. i was feeling great all day with my tiny runner's high but my legs were hating life the rest of the week. since it's been insanely hot since then, i haven't ventured back out, but my tennis shoes are waiting patiently for me.

-i was one of the last two people standing at the end of an extremely fast-paced game of simon says. that means i'm good at . . . following directions? awesome.

-one of our activities was learning to play games that my grandparents played as kids. i love hearing them tell stories and trying to imagine my grandparents as little kids. i didn't take very many pictures, so i'm borrowing these from my aunt.


grandpa showing the great grandkids a thing or two about marbles.


grandma playing jacks.

-my favorite thing to do every reunion is just to stay up playing games and catching up with everyone. we missed all the cousins that couldn't come, and hope to see you next time!

reunion photos courtesy of Holly Severson