A Family Fourth

The fourth of July has always held special meaning for my family. Besides its traditional meaning here in the USA, it was my grandmother’s birthday and my parents were married on July 4, 1963. Those of you that are quick at math will note that my parents celebrated their 45th anniversary this past weekend. I am constantly amazed at the level of commitment they have maintained through the years. Happy Anniversary to you, Mom and Dad! You have consistently reinvented your relationship and I think that is part of the secret to your success.

To celebrate, my “immediate family” descended upon Pagosa Springs, Colorado for the weekend. Since we are absurdly close and want to be together every waking (and non-waking) moment, we packed my parents’ house with 21 people. I am pretty sure that increased the population of the small town by about 10%, someone probably had to repaint the sign at the town’s entrance.

The festivities included a parade downtown, fireworks at the high school and a baseball game in the field on my parents’ land. My dad has created a baseball field complete with correct measurements, perfect mowing, bases, a backstop and team benches. We just need to work on adding lights for night time games. It was a great weekend and getting everyone together is no small feat. We had four generations together for the weekend: my parents, their kids, the grandkids and the lone great grandkid.

I must say that a highlight for me was the new board game we played, Quelf. It’s quite ridiculous and random. The game is not for the intelligent, but rather for those willing to embarrass themselves. For instance, my nephew Josh got a card that required him to say, “Here me, for I have spoken” at the end of each sentence he uttered during the hour-long game. My nephew-in-law, Matt, had to make a snorkel out of a plastic water bottle and wear it for the whole game. By the way, he also had to ask his foot permission to talk. These are a few glimpses of what makes the game so fantastic. It’s a “roll on the ground laughing” type of game and I highly recommend it for anyone that likes to look foolish or could use a good dose of foolishness. Since I fit the latter category, I can’t wait to go out and buy it. Some photo highlights:

My great nephew (I feel old), my niece, myself and my sister! (Note the matching shirts, a requirement! A gang of 21 people in matching shirts…scary!)

The group that mauled each other during a heated game of spoons: my niece-in-law, my nephew, my nephew, my nephew-in-law, another nephew and D. (Note the haircuts on the left, the Mohawk and the “Cul-de-sac” were big hits over the weekend.)