It was a special weekend...and I am tired

There are those times away that stand out, and this was one of them. We drove up to northern California for a Memorial weekend chock full of cowboy rustling, a hoedown, good eats and a celebration on Sunday of my mom's 70th birthday. And the wild poppies...oh the poppies...
It was a large family gathering and at one time, on Sunday, we had 11 adults and 10 kids (8 of them under 6 years old.) It was a blast!

I could write about all of BOY's firsts: his first time riding a horse, the first time down a water slide by himself (x 5 million), or the first time winning a race (while riding a hobby horse.)

Then there were GIRL's exploits: counting to 100 with Uncle J, putting on a purple velvet evening gown and joining her cousins in a dance skit, more dancing at a hoedown, or going down the water slide with her daddy.

I will never forget hugging my sister for the first time since her near fatal accident- the feel of her wrapped in my arms...alive.

I had my Susie Homemaker hat on and I whipped up a homemade carrot cake with real cream cheese frosting from scratch for my mom's 70th birthday- with a little help from BOY, GIRL and one of their cousins. Baking a cake is a wonderful way to visit, and I enjoyed the time with my sister-n-law and my sister in the kitchen.

We presented my mom with a Shutterfly photo album containing pictures of her children, stepchildren, and all of her grandchildren (20 of them!) She cried. Worth every hour of putting the album together. A wonderful collaboration from everyone involved.

My favorite moments:

BOY getting up on a horse with no hesitation, a huge smile on his face.

Seeing BOY barreling down the water slide and shooting into the pool, and the expression of accomplishment on his face afterwards.

Watching BOY as he raced across a field -running while managing a hobby horse between his legs, then going around a barrel and racing back - winning his first race. I was stunned at his competitiveness. And proud. He got a lot of high fives.

Helping GIRL pick out a costume from my mom's costume box. Only the purple velvet would do. And then watching her in a little dance skit with her girl cousins performing for the family.

Seeing GIRL dance with joyful abandon at the hoedown in the barn on Friday night. Twirling and smiling. Twirling and falling. Twirling and smiling.

GIRL's wide eyes as she came around the curve of the water slide with her daddy.

Lest you think it was all poppies and cowboys, GIRL honored us with several volcanoesque tantrums, a cot was broken, a bit of china shattered, there was much piano pounding with small hands, and E's white shoes were so distracting to the family photographer that she had me place my skirt over them for the picture.

It was a special weekend... and I am tired.

**Photo credit to Google images

	Tweet