Despite the other exciting events, the new baby was the highlight. Because, duh. New babies are one of life's greatest joys! They smell new and perfect, their toes are tiny and perfect, their crossed-eyed look while they try to focus on your face is funny and perfect...everything about them is perfect. Especially if they're amenable to being passed around, and this baby was. Perfect! She belongs to my cousin, and her name is Kate (love it!) and this is my sister Kate holding her. The two Kates.
And like every family gathering, there are copious amounts of food, as there should be. We ate, and then we ate some more, and then we ate still more.
And here are the great-grandkids. One is missing from this photo, but everyone is looking at the camera and smiling which was a small miracle. (You'll notice below that NOT all the children are looking and smiling in a subsequent photo, namely my children...) Don't they look so lovely and innocent here???
This is Kai with his cousin Melanie. They were born about one month apart but it's hard to tell they're so close in age because he's so much taller than her! Even though she's slouching in this picture, Melanie really is a dainty 'lil thing (but smart as whip, that one!).
And here are some cousins riding around on the stick horses that my grandma made and which we used to ride around at her house when we were kids. Ah, nostalgia!
Back to the baby. I'm telling you, she was passed around all day and the total highlight of the weekend. Here she is with her Great-Grandma Clark!
Overnight we stayed at a campground, and it was the first time our boys have really been camping. They've been asking us for months to take them camping, and we promised them we could when we were back in America. So we dug out the tent, and my husband (who's the best man around) slept in the tent with all three of our boys while I abandoned him and slept in my parents' camper. They had a blast and are already asking when we can go camping again :)
And then we celebrated my nephew's birthday. Presents and s'mores. Life doesn't get much better than that!
I also snagged a few headshots of our boys because I didn't have anything current. They make my heart squeeze.
Then more celebrating with my aunt and uncle who've been married 40 years now! My cousin planned a lunch gathering at the Cedar Springs Brewing Company (where my uncle is a part owner), and we got to look through their old wedding photos and enjoy time with everyone again.
This time all the great-grandkids were present so we attempted another photo, but the Horn boys were not feeling it. Asa was exhausted and had simply reached his limit for the morning, Kai was in a fowl mood for no good reason, as was Caleb. Speaking of him, can anyone find him in the picture? He is there, somewhere... I'm also there, trying to hold up a screaming Asa. Sigh... the things you do to capture memories!
Asa really was exhausted. This is what he did after the photo. All on his own he curled up on a chair with his snuggle blanket to conk out. Eli helped him out by creating more of a bed than one chair could offer. Poor kid. An event-filled weekend like this is a lot to ask of a toddler!
Lastly, we headed over to Grandma's house. This is the place I think of when I remember Clark holidays: sledding down the hill behind the house and seeing who could make it all the way to the woods, finding Easter baskets hidden around the house, the kids Christmas tree piled high with presents, and always Grandma's chocolate chip cookies at the ready. And this barn too, where we used to climb up into the hayloft and play while bats hung above us, or ride the stick horses across the yard and back to the house for more cookies. Well, the barn has seen better days and needs to be torn down, so everyone was invited over to have a last look and take whatever they wanted from what was left inside. I was glad to show my kids my grandma and grandpa''s house, and the barn too, even though they may never remember it. At least I can say they've been there.
Here is our family with Grandma Clark. It was a perfect summer night.
And my nephew, who asked for a photo shoot. I love a kid who loves the camera :)
It was a wonderful weekend and we felt so blessed to see my dad's whole family. The only person not there was my cousin who's serving in the military and out of the country right now. But his bride was even there, who we'd never met because they were married last summer while we were still in Kenya. So nearly everyone was there and it was a special time. And we've already got plans to go back for Red Flannel Day in the fall! (Yes, that's a thing and it's a ton of fun!)
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