Together Is The Best Place To Be.

After realizing I would have to say goodbye to my Grandma until we will meet again, I couldn't think of a better group of people to be surrounded by than my family. The day after Independence Day, my family began gathering in Island Park for our annual family reunion. We knew it would be different this year. There would be one less cook, one less helper, one less animal-spotter, one less card game player, and one less person pulling up the gravel road to the cabin in my Grandpa's Cadillac. The week was filled with a few more hugs, kisses, and tears than the years before, but the joy that comes with being together and knowing that we get to be together forever was a great comfort and reminder of what life is all about. 

The once a year, one of a kind vacation was filled with all sorts of activities. We pedaled on bikes, ran out of gas on motorcycles, got dirty riding the RZR, cruised the Island Park Reservoir, had some luck fishing, and filled our bellies full of great food (if you don't believe me, you should see how much my belly grew over that week)!

As with almost every other year, I got to celebrate my birthday with the greatest of company there in Island Park. I can't even count how many times Paxton exclaimed with the utmost excitement, "Happy Birpee, Corky!" I was spoiled with the only things any expectant mother would want, maternity clothes! I sure felt loved on that sweet summer day.

The vacation is looked forward to all year long, and always seems to fly by in the blink of an eye. It was another wonderful week that will certainly fill its rightful spot in our memories. The outdoor toys and indoor amenities are always extremely enjoyable and mounds of fun, but if all of that was taken away, I think we could still have a fabulous time just being together.