Lunch last Saturday with old friends....

Rose called several months ago to see if I would like to meet with her and some of our older friends of many years for lunch. Of course I am all about catching up with old friends so we set a date, time and location. Last Saturday we all met at Tripps and had a grand time eating, laughing and just enjoying seeing each other.

I hope we can do this again sooner than later since none of us are getting any younger. The funny thing is I was back at this restaurant the very next day at lunch with our speaker - Keith! Had the same salad too. Thanks Rose for thinking of this and putting it together. You did a great job.

Few pictures of the Grand Adventure with Gma and Papa.....

As mentioned in my previous post, Page went on a Grand Adventure with Leah's parents in June. They hit the Zoo and Smithsonian in DC, NYC, Brooklyn, Wallkill and Patterson, NY. There are tons of pictures and videos but I snatched just a few to highlight a tiny bit of their Grand Adventure.

Leah's Mom said the captain of the Circle Tours boat took a liking to Page and sat with her for quite awhile answering her many questions. Leah and Kurt were so happy to hear so many good comments about how people took to Page and how well mannered she was. Makes us all very proud of her. There are SO many pictures so this will just have to do for now.

District Convention with Family -

Roseanne and I decided we wanted to attend the convention with some of our children this year so we drove North to do just that! We left on Thursday afternoon and I got to see Lauren's lovely home when I dropped Roseanne off. It was also nice to see all but one of her children during the weekend. The convention was overwhelmingly wonderful.  They are always exactly what we need at the proper time but having Anthony Morris from the GB speak all three days was over the top good. Since it was July 4th weekend, most everyone had Monday off so it seemed to help everyone stay pretty relaxed the whole three days.

If you look real close, you will see Ash's little baby bump for her twin boys.  One evening we went over to Leah's Mom and Dad's to watch the video of their big trip. Page2 took some great pictures too and had a wonderful adventure with her Grandma and Papa.

I always enjoy being with Leah's Dad. Sometime Page reminds me so much of him when she is telling me something. She also laughs like him when she thinks something is very funny. A very special man this is. We were planning to go over to the Lake on Monday to meet everyone there but Roseanne let me know it would be okay with her if I left her to come home with her son and his family. I really needed to get home early and Kurt was trying to get ready to start his new job so it worked out well. On the way home, I ran into a heavy rain that forced almost everyone to come to a stop for several minutes. It rained awhile and then became beautiful for the remainder of my trip. I promised everyone I wouldn't spoil our upcoming convention for them and can't wait to see how the talks might differ a little. I always enjoy spending time with Kurt, Leah and Page - wonderful hosts they are.

Family Reunion .....

It has been a very busy time since my last post so I'm just going to hit the highlights as I remember them. It was hot, hot, hot for our family reunion June 26th.  We did have it at the new place provided for us by our wonderful cousins Dwayne and Barry.  Aunt Eunice has been hosting this reunion at her home for so many years and they have access to this lovely "air conditioned" building on their own little lake with a fishing dock and it was lovely.

All of my Mom's brother's and sister's families were represented but one. It was nice to have our oldest male and oldest female cousin with us this year. My sister Ann would have enjoyed seeing everyone. I did too much and got overheated so came home a little earlier than the kids. Some of my family and Ann's family weren't there for the pictures - they had gone to get fishing rods for the kids. Turns out Michael caught the biggest fish! It was so nice being with Ann's family for a little while. Lolo said they will come back but want to just be with Mama's family next year and that will be good. I was sad to see them leave but at my age, I have found that next year will be here before you know it.

The Kikuchis are in the house......

My sister's family got in last night safe and sound after a very long drive.  They rented a van this time so they could all fit. After getting settled in the hotel and having dinner they came right over.  I couldn't wait to see my Lolo - of course we both were a little weepy.  She has really missed my sister but especially since the 50th anniversary came and went a few months ago with all the memories and sadness that she didn't live long enough to celebrate it. They made very good time and got here pretty early.  They stayed awhile but I could tell they were tired from the trip so we agreed they would come here tomorrow so we could all go down to Ann's grave together. BigD drove and Tad rode with us which gave us a chance to "really" get caught up.  He has lost a lot of weight and said food just doesn't taste that good.  He is trying to adjust to being alone after being with someone for almost 50 years so he knows it may never happen.

We all stood back and let Tad walk up first and take the sweetheart roses he brought for her. They were her favorite flower for corsages and he gave her a corsage every year on their anniversary. Then BigD and I stood back so Lolo, Michael, Naoki and Warren could go up. Lolo brought long stem red roses for everyone to place on the headstone. Michael brought a picture of himself with some awards he won.

Warren wanted to see some of our family's graves as well as the one that lists my great aunt's maiden name with her husband's name underneath it in smaller letters. We all got a kick out of that one. Lolo text messaged me that as soon as we pulled off (we had to wait for them for a few minutes) Michael broke down pretty bad. He really misses his grandmother. We drove the back way to Creedmoor to pick up some cucumbers, fresh corn and a watermelon. Then we stopped by Bob's BBQ and headed home the back way. After eating - they headed over to Raleigh to visit with Tad's 93 year old brother and his family. I can't wait for Page2 to see Michael's new hair cut - it is very, very short. And he has gotten so tall - he really wanted to think he was 5' but we measured him and he was an inch short. :)  Had a really long email from Page telling me how ready she is to be home and see everyone. BigD called Kurt who was on his way home but then Leah called and was at a standstill in traffic.  There was a brush fire on the highway ahead of her.  I think we are going to have take-out from Page's favorite Chinese restaurant tonight when she gets in.  Her flight is supposed to land at 9pm.  Woo Hoo - pretty soon - my whole family will be in the house too!

More pictures to share from Sunday night's dinner....

My dahlink Katarina posted some lovely pictures she took from our dinner on Sunday night. Since she "snatched" a few of mine for her own blog, I returned the favor and "snatched" a few of hers for mine.

I love, love, love this picture of Roseanne. She is surrounded by most of her babies and some friends and it shows how happy she is in this picture. I'm going to have that feeling this weekend and can't wait!!!!

Her two granddaughters just can't get enough of their Nani. Roseanne was blessed with two daughters and two sons - with the boys being in the middle between the girls. It was almost like she had two sets of kids - one with an older sister, younger brother and the other with an older brother and younger sister. They are all beautiful, responsible adults whom I love dearly.

Here is Bri's princess - such a pretty little girl. So much like her beautiful Mom who will soon be introducing this little one to her new sister.

We have eaten many meals together over the years but there are evenings when there are just the right amount of people, the right people, the right food, the right mood, the right weather......you get the picture. It was a lovely evening......

Good friends, good food, new life......

Roseanne asked me to come to dinner yesterday! It turns out, her oldest daughter was in town with her little girl so I not only got to see her, but also her son and his beautiful family and another young couple who are very close to the family. I was so sleepy after the meeting that I finally laid across the bed with Miya and before I knew it - at least two hours had passed by. Yum - the most delicious sleep in the world. I put on the dress I bought for summer - beach, gatherings, etc., and BigD got a picture of me just before I left.  I really like this one so much better than the other one that all but fell apart when it was washed. This one fits so good, I may even cut it off and wear it for more non-casual wear. I wore the little jeweled silver flip flops and one of the little twin girls was very quick to tell me how much she "loved' my shoes.  Such a sweetie.  We had the twin girls, Bri's daughter who will be welcoming a baby sister soon, and Katarina and B's  little boy and little girl. I love watching these little ones interact as I watched their parents do when they were younger with my babies.  When I walked in, I saw her little Lani and immediately called her KennaKat which was wrong!  I couldn't get over how much she looks like her cousin.  She is really starting to look more like her beautiful Mom with her Dad's blue, blue eyes. I know they are all excited about the upcoming addition to their little family. GM cooked some ribs on the grill that were delicous with a huge salad and other side dishes. Of course we all had a little wine before dinner and Roseanne was as excited as I was that KJ was on sale this weekend.  After dinner, Roseanne brought out her famous blackberry and cream pies! OMGoodness - could they be any better? I could sit down and eat an entire pie by myself.  It was nice getting caught up with everyone and watching the babies.  Made me homesick for my own babies but I'm not going to whine because I will have ALL OF THEM with me in a few days!  They are all coming in as well as Ann's family for the family reunion on Sunday.  BigD and I are almost quivering with anticipation.  I can't wait to see the pictures Page2 got on her trip.  She comes home from her grand adventure today.  I know her Mom and Dad can't want to see her too. I have decided that it is impossible to take a bad picture of Bri here with her little bundle showing so prettily.

I love this picture of Alex and his little friend. Guess who put the pretty clovers in her hair - yep - Alex. She is one of the twins and such a sweetie. Actually, she isn't the prissy one - her sister is.

This is a picture of her Mom with Bri - another friendship that is standing the test of time and distance. They have been friends since they were children and are still there for each other in every way possible.

Pretty KennaKat - she was shy with me last night but today she was totally comfortable. She and her brother and Mom came to work in service with me this afternoon. It wasn't as long as we hoped but at least Katarina got to go on a good call. I enjoyed visiting with the two of them while we were waiting in the car.

And of course little Lani. Isn't she a dumpling? I love that little denim skirt and her little silver ballet flats. The good news about her having a sister is she will have so many lovely clothes already in her closet! I wish I had taken a picture of the deck - the flowers are so pretty in their big pots. I really need to do something about mine but I can't even remember to water the few I have. Roseanne and I will be heading up to Bri's and Kurt's and Leah's in a few weeks. I'll stay with mine and she'll stay with hers and we are going to the convention with them. I'm looking forward to it.