Lobster Fest, 7th Annual

This Labor Day weekend was Lobster Fest for our family.  Hard to believe this was the 7th Annual...also hard to believe it just keeps getting better and better.  Whenever we are all together, at some point I always look around in wonder at the group we've become.  My parents' sixteenth grandkid is on the way and it just keeps growing.

The fifteen grandkids (all 12 and under) LOVE each other and get along so well.  One thing I noticed as I was going through pictures is how they switch up partners on their own.  Sometimes the sweet 10 year-old girls are being girly off by themselves and other time they are pushing a 2 year-old on the swings or giving the baby a bottle.  So sweet.

Like most families, we are not without our fair share of dysfunction, but I have to give thanks for God's grace in our lives and for his blessings that have allowed our family to grow into the wonderful group that it is.  Tonight...my heart is full.

The weekend kicked off on Friday afternoon.  My sister Amy's house was the meeting spot for us in CT, my brother in RI, my cousin in PA and my aunt and uncle in NY.  She served up lots of good, casual food and we caught up on the last couple months since we'd seen each other.

I didn't take too many pictures, but some swam and the kids ran around outside and we laughed and cried together (in a good way :).  I like this of me and my man.  My family was joking that they thought Shaun had left me and I was just covering up by saying he was working on the apartment....it'd been a while since he'd been around.  Have I mentioned we're happy to have him back??

 After a nice big breakfast, we headed out to the lake, where my sister's in-laws have a beautiful home and boat.  They weren't there, but we made ourselves right at home.  :)

Can't even take the cuteness that is Aiden right now at 25 months.

 His daddy's pretty cute, too.  :)

 My sweet adrenaline junkie, as Shaun calls her.  Could not keep her out of the water!  This was her first time tubing and she kept giving the thumbs up sign, signaling to speed the boat up.  She also desperately wanted to jump out of the boat while it was speeding along.

 As usual, Avery just shook her head at her sister and played it safe.  Uncle Chris gave her a little coaching and let her drive.

 After a quick stop off at our niece's birthday party (Shaun's side), we continued on to Rhode Island where my brother and SIL were hosting.  It was an informal house-warming party and mostly just an excuse for everyone to see their house and be together.

The '06 club...also the three homeschooled kindgergarteners.  :)

 My sister Amy and her husband Colombo.  (She's the one who is adding the 16th grandchild in March!)

 The Boyds....my Uncle Lee and Aunt Bonnie and my cousins, Melody and Johnny.  Though I have a large extended family, they are the only ones who have always lived close (as in less than a day's drive).  They've been major players in our lives from the very beginning and are so dear to us all.

 While we were together, we celebrated the 3rd quarter birthdays, our lightest quarter.  What makes it crazy is that four of them are in September, all within a week.

 The birthday people!

 Sunday morning we made all our dishes for Lobster Fest.  Aunt Bonnie let the girls help her with a peach pie.  Melody and I (and the dumb dog) went for a run and got in some good time together.

Shaun and my uncle went to the driving range and we met them at my sister Bethany's house.

 We all got to work playing.

 Shaun spent some time teaching Colombo Setback aka Pitch.  He got it quick and apparently hasn't lost yet.

 My mom got into the games....

 Here's my brother Tim and his wife Elizabeth.

 A fallen tree in the hurricane provided an extra fun place to play.

 My family!  Hoping for a better one for September, but posting it just in case. :)

 We ate well, to say the least.

 Our hosts, my sister Bethany and her husband Chris.

 This was so funny.  Madison was handing out jello cups to the kids, but instead of just handing them over, she lined them up and quizzed them.  What's 2 + 2?  What's that (pointing the basketball)?  If they got it right, they got to move onto the next round, which started at the back of the line, without a jello cup.  They were a little confused at first, but quickly figured out it wasn't really too much fun moving to the next round.

Trevor figured it out pretty quick and gave the wrong answer to the question.  When she said Wrong! he gave a fist pump and said YES!  Amanda's turn was coming up and I SO wish I'd had the video going because I knew exactly what her reaction was going to be if she was sent to the "third round".

 This is after she'd given Madison an earful and had calmed down a bit.  Hysterical!  She never did figure out that she could give the wrong answer.

 The '09 Club!  Fondly referred to as such because they were all born in 2009, just five months apart from the oldest to the youngest.  Trey, Levi, Rocco, Aiden.

 Ultimate frizbee, which went well past dark.

 We all started to get a little sleepy as the night wore on....

Here we are (just missing my mom's husband, who was not feeling well).  What a crew!  We retired the tye dies and had t-shirts made up.  Yay for another great year!

On Monday, the guys caught a 9 am tee time.  While they were doing 18, we gathered back at my sister Amy's house for fun in the pool, bike riding, cards and fun.  Finally we said good-bye with grateful heart for each other, for beautiful weather, for another good year.

If you have six minutes and would like to see more from the weekend, I made a little slideshow: