Family Reunions Galore

This is turning into a summer of family reunions for us.  We started off with the Peterson family reunion in Payson.   My Mom and her sister Sharon were in charge of hosting it this year.  We ended up scheduling it for June 27th, the same day as my 14th Wedding Anniversary.  It was fitting though, because my Grandma's parents were also married on June 27th.  

We made pork and bean chalupas in four different crock pots so we would have enough and we provided lots of toppings so everyone could make their own taco salads.  Everyone brings a side dish or dessert to share, so there was plenty of food.  The attendance was a bit sparse this year but we had fun anyway.  I was lame and didn't take any photos.  My Mom and Brittney painted a tree on a huge piece of cardboard with a branch for each one of the Peterson siblings.  We had my Dad and Peter take photos of each family that was there with this fun new Polaroid type camera that my Mom got just for the reunion.  I had printed off photos of each of the siblings we placed each photo on a branch and put their descendants on the leaves above them.  (If anyone reading this has a photo of the finished family tree and wants to email it to me I'd be very appreciative!)  It was fun for everyone to see which "branch" of the family everyone else belongs to.  We also had some activities for the kids including a pinata and face painting.  My aunt Sharon made a family bingo game which was a lot of fun too.  Britt and my cousin Kirsten decorated a cake for the occasion.  You can read all about it here.

Next up was a small Rich family reunion.  My Mom and I recently reconnected with her cousins who she hadn't seen in about 40 years.  We got together with her cousin Sue and her family right after Christmas.  Then her cousin Gerry and his wife stopped by for dinner on their way from Las Vegas to Wyoming.  I hosted the barbecue at my house.

Aunt Sharon, Janna, Grammy, Cousin Gerry and my Mom.

Sharon, BJ, Jill, Peter, Grammy, Walt, 

Janis, Justin, Janna & Gerry.

It was fun to meet Gerry and Janna and the best part was Gerry brought me two flashdrives full of family photos and information.  There were even some photos of my grandfather from his childhood that I had never seen before.

Our last reunion was a Chudleigh one held at Jessica's house last Thursday.  My cousin Julia and my Granddad drove out to Utah from Pennsylvania and are staying for a few weeks.  My brother Dan and his wife Mia were also in town from California, so we all got together for dinner.  My aunt Sheryl and my cousin Brian and his wife Michelle and their four kids also were able to attend.  I was in charge of making dessert and made a banana cake with caramel frosting and Blythe helped me make chocolate cupcakes with cream cheese frosting that we baked in ice cream cones.  They were really cute and were a big hit with the kids and even some of the adults.  However, they ended up being a lot more work than I had anticipated, so I doubt I'll be making them again.  

One of my favorite things about summertime is how much easier it is to get together with family and friends and just hang out!