The Summer of Reunions

Based on my own summer and lots of people I've talked to, this has been the Summer of Reunions. Mine started off with a family reunion (Photo 1). My grandma, Mama Billie (pictured in the pink shirt), rented out an entire B&B a few miles from my house and filled it with about 35 of us from UT, TX, FL, CO, and NM for a whole week.

Next came a reunion for my ad agency (Photo 2). When I first moved to Utah, I worked for the most incredible high tech advertising agency ev-ah! It was called DSW and had headquarters in Salt Lake City as well as San Francisco. Well, unfortunately, all great things must end and soon after I quit to stay home with my son and freelance, the entire company went under. But many of us kept in touch and we had a reunion at the fast food restaurant right across the street from where the agency used to be located. (Which is, as an interesting tidbit you can use to sound smart, the parking lot that was hit by the only tornado to ever hit Utah.)

Then came my husband's high school reunion, which was held at a restaurant only a couple of miles from my home (Photo 3).

And last but not least, my own high school reunion, which was just on the south side of Denver (Photos 4 and 5). It was so great to see my high school friends again and of course with that came remembering what it was like back then. Kind of scary, really. :) Anyway, this has been a whirlwind of a summer and though I'd like the warm weather to continue for quite a while more, I have to say I'm looking forward to the more regimented schedule that comes with the fall.

How about you? Any reunions to speak of? Do you go to yours?

Reunion Times Four

Ahh, summertime. Impromptu barbecues, chilled watermelon, homemade ice cream, tank tops, flip-flops, belly-flops, and, for many of us, reunions.

Last week, the little town of Eden, Utah experienced an enormous spike in population as 30 of Mama Billie's (sitting pretty amongst her grandchildren and great grandchildren) relatives from Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Florida and Utah checked into the Snowberry Inn. An iced keg of rootbeer from Rooster's Brewery graced the kitchen, providing refreshment in-between shopping trips, hikes, boating expeditions, wildlife safaris, target shooting, hot tubbing, alpine sliding, the Ogden Pioneer Days Rodeo, a tour of Model Linen, and games of volleyball, wiffleball, horseshoes, and cards. It was the 2nd Annual Eden, Utah Gray Family Reunion. And it was fun, fun, fun!!!

But I'm exhausted.

When my husband and I got up at 5 Sunday morning to take my sister and Mama Billie to the airport, we thought we'd have a couple of days to catch our breath before Mom, my 3 boys, and I drive to Colorado for my 20 year high school reunion. But then my uncle, aunt and their 3 teenagers called after their whirlwind trip to Yellowstone to say they're staying at our house for a couple of nights before heading back to Dallas. So! I popped a couple of elk roasts in the Crock-Pot and made a fresh batch of iced tea. The good thing is, I'm not the only one who's exhausted so while some of them went to Costco to get family reunion photos developed, the rest of us are hanging out at home, watching The Simpsons Movie.

Still. I'm exhausted. And I've got three more reunions (one for my advertising agency, one for my husband's high school, and one for my high school) to go!

Anyone else having a big reunion (or two or three) this summer? My friends just had one in Durango, CO with 100 family members! Holy cow! Steph, don't you have your 20 year high school reunion this summer, too? Or has it already happened?