Family gatherings

We have a lot of family visits planned over the next month. I am so excited to see everyone. I will share some pictures from each over the next few weeks.

First, my Aunt Helen is turning 100 this month and we are attending a birthday party with her to celebrate. That means a trip to California where I get to see my mom, both of my sisters, and a few other family members. I have not seen some of them since Thanksgiving except for a video call at Christmas. The others I haven't seen in a much longer time. Some I saw at a party last summer. For others, it has been many years. The weather forecast is mostly nice, so this should be fun.

Then my daughter and her family come to stay for just over a week. We get to play with the grand-kids. I will hand over a bunch of DVDs, some clothes, and some food storage. We love having them visit. Haven't been with them since Thanksgiving either. The Pro wants to be sure that we have some activities planned so we don't sit around watching tv, although I think we'll want to watch some of the DVDs. I think we have lots planned, so it should be fine.

The day they leave, some of my step-daughter's family comes. The grandson wants some time with the Pro to polish his golf game since he is now on the high school golf team. The granddaughter who just delivered the Pro's namesake should be coming too, so we get to see the baby. We spent Christmas with them, so it hasn't been quite as long. They should be here about a week.

I think family time together is important. It is how we build traditions. It is how we strengthen bonds. It is how we show support for one another. It is often how we are able to give new moms a break to rejuvenate. It is how we show love.

When I was young, we visited one aunt and uncle in Seattle and another in Arizona. We visited some cousins on a farm in Oregon when I was quite small. I don't remember many details except trying to milk a cow and bare feet in the dirt. These visits helped us develop deeper relationships that still endure.

Both of my grandmothers had the family over for Christmas activities, one on the eve, the other on the day. My mom's mom always had us over for Thanksgiving until we started camping every year. I loved those family get-togethers. The food was good and the relationships even better.

My sister and one uncle have birthdays around July 4. Mom's mom had a birthday get-together almost every year. This means my sister never had a birthday party. It was always a family celebration. However, she always got fireworks on her birthday. My mom graciously saved sparklers so I could have those for my birthday in January until I was old enough to understand that they weren't for my sister but for the country. Still, it was fun to do sparklers in the middle of winter.

Family gatherings are much harder when the family is spread out. I raised my daughter in New England, so I saw may family once or twice each year. We tried very hard to participate in my in-laws gatherings so my daughter would be connected to those cousins. Now that she lives in the west, she sees less of them. However, none of us are very close physically. We make up for the space with phone and video calls. That doesn't make up for the missed hugs though.