A Family Celebration

My aunt is celebrating her 90th birthday this weekend. She's my mom's sister, the only remaining sibling of 3. We've always been close; in college I lived with her and her husband during the summers and worked in their business. She's also the center of our extended family life. For most of our lives we've gathered at her house in CT for "clan events." Last weekend was no exception. In honor of her birthday her son and daughter invited the clan to a surprise birthday party held at her house! It was her grandson's birthday weekend, so she thought she was hosting his party. Imagine her surprise when each of us gathered, from different parts of the country, on her doorstep! Her 2 children, her 4 grandchildren, and her 2 great grandchildren were there. And it was the first time since my mom's funeral that all of my siblings and I were all together. I'm the oldest and my 2 sons (one from RI and one from Los Angeles) and my husband arrived on her doorstep at the same time as my middle sister from Indiana. Next to arrive were my brother and his wife from Virginia, and our cousin and her husband from Georgia. Then my sister, her husband, and 3 children from Michigan arrived. Just as my aunt exclaimed, everyone's here but .... in came my youngest sister, her husband, and their 2 children from New York.
There were 30 of us in all gathered in her small condo for the celebration.

It was especially wonderful to gather for a happy reason, to celebrate her, and to celebrate family. We took lots of pictures, laughed a lot, shed a few tears as we reminisced and missed those who aren't physically with us anymore, and enjoyed being together.

I can honestly say that not only do I love my extended family, I LIKE them too!