The Hart Family
I'm sorry that you get to hear from me yet again. It seems to make more sense for me to write the post when Tim has homework due and I'm just doing whatever I please. So, I'm sorry you have to hear from me 3 weeks in a row, but that is the way it is.
This past week was full of fun. It was our Hart family reunion that is held every two years. We had a pretty good turn out. There were 38 out of 47 of us there. Yvonne and her family, my parents, and my oldest niece Katherine were missed. We did have Katherine's fiance though, which was a cool bonus. I know that I would have never been brave enough to attend my future in-law's family reunion without my significant other. Then again, I do tend to struggle with crowds and getting to know people.
This past week was full of fun. It was our Hart family reunion that is held every two years. We had a pretty good turn out. There were 38 out of 47 of us there. Yvonne and her family, my parents, and my oldest niece Katherine were missed. We did have Katherine's fiance though, which was a cool bonus. I know that I would have never been brave enough to attend my future in-law's family reunion without my significant other. Then again, I do tend to struggle with crowds and getting to know people.
Back: Greg, Gus, Spencer, Marshall; Front: Valerie, Karen, Lisa, Kaitlyn, Carmen
I have to say that I absolutely love my family. Just for fun, here are a few random facts about the Harts. My parent's oldest child, Gus, is now 43 and their youngest child, Valerie, is 19. Their oldest grandchild is 20 and their youngest is 1 month old. My parents now have 25 grandchildren. 9 of their 10 living children are married and 7 of those children have children of their own. On average, those who have children have 4. My parent's oldest grandchild, Katherine, is engaged to be married in August. I'm predicting that my parents will end up with 40-some grandchildren before it's all said and done and they may be great grandparents soon. (No pressure Katherine.) My parents have children living in Utah, Arizona, Washington, Alaska, New York, and Dubai. We are getting pretty spread out, but we love spending time together.
Playing Goaltimate
We had our reunion at Ensign Ranch near Cle Elum, Washington. It was a really cool place. We had rented the lodge which had 7 bedrooms with 2 bunks in each, hot showers, a huge dining room, an amazing kitchen, a large living space, pool tables, fuse ball tables, and shuffle board. There was also a gigantic slip n slide, canoes, tepees, horse rides, and a ropes course. There was never a dull moment. We played some pretty intense games of goaltimate and had some great evening activities. We try to keep things pretty low key and not too scheduled, however, each evening we did have a family activity scheduled. On Monday evening we had our traditional "What's up minute" in which each of us gets approximately 60 seconds to share what's up with us. Everyone participates, which makes it take quite awhile, but it's good to hear from everyone and good to reflect back on the past 2 years and think about how you can sum up the most important parts. Tuesday evening we held our family history night. Each of the Hart siblings came prepared to share 2-3 childhood memories. (In reality, I think we all shared 3-7 memories, but that's okay.) It was fun to remember and laugh about memories we were familiar with and to hear about some childhood memories from other siblings we had never heard. Wednesday evening we had our traditional talent show. Mostly it's the grandchildren that share talents, but there were a few siblings that shared too. There was dancing (break dancing and highland dancing), piano pieces, jokes, and tumbling. Valerie, Tim, and I did some jumping rope. I did a Yup'ik dance and showed off my kuspuq and ivory carvings. The Hart siblings even performed our nontalent. We choreographed and sang "So long" from Sound of Music. (I'm pretty sure that's not the real title of the song.) It was pretty fun rehearsing for that one.
The reunion ended all too early on Thursday morning. The majority of us headed to Seattle to continue the party. On the way to Seattle we stopped in Leavenworth and hiked at Wallace Falls. Our last stop was a Tutta Bella for authentic Italian pizza. Friday each family split up to do various activities, but we did met up with each other for dinner.
The reunion ended all too early on Thursday morning. The majority of us headed to Seattle to continue the party. On the way to Seattle we stopped in Leavenworth and hiked at Wallace Falls. Our last stop was a Tutta Bella for authentic Italian pizza. Friday each family split up to do various activities, but we did met up with each other for dinner.
Just landed!
Tim and I met with our adoption case worker on Friday. We really like our case worker and are glad to be working with her. We gave her our update and she gave us hers. In the end we just need to continue waiting. Hopefully some birthmother will pick us soon, but we'll continue attempting to be patient until then.
Friday afternoon Carmen and Jeremy treated me to something really fun. They have a friend from church who is a para glider and they arranged for me to go paragliding with him. I had never dreamed I would actually do something like that before, but I wasn't about to turn such a cool opportunity down. I was worried that I was going to be terrified and it was a bit frightening to anticipate running off the top of a mountain, but honestly, actually doing it was not scary at all. Jared (the para glider) was really nice and explained everything to me really well. He let me fly the wing. Our landing could have been better, but I guess that just means I'll have to try it again sometime.
Friday afternoon Carmen and Jeremy treated me to something really fun. They have a friend from church who is a para glider and they arranged for me to go paragliding with him. I had never dreamed I would actually do something like that before, but I wasn't about to turn such a cool opportunity down. I was worried that I was going to be terrified and it was a bit frightening to anticipate running off the top of a mountain, but honestly, actually doing it was not scary at all. Jared (the para glider) was really nice and explained everything to me really well. He let me fly the wing. Our landing could have been better, but I guess that just means I'll have to try it again sometime.
Tandem paragliding
Friday Tim and I spent the night with his cousin Sarah and her family Jimi and Gracie. It was really good to see them and spend time with them. Their daughter Gracie is a cutie. She is such a happy girl, always smiling and giggling. Jimi and Sarah made us a delicious breakfast. I felt spoiled. We spent most of Saturday morning with them before leaving to make one last stop in Seattle. We had lunch and spent the afternoon with Sarah and Edgar Cheney. It was good to catch up with them and see their 3 kids.
Finally on Saturday afternoon Tim and I headed back to Zillah, Washington to spend some time with his parents. It's been nice to back at their house (and to be able to wash our clothes!).
Sunday we went to church with Tim's parents and spent the day with them. It was a pretty low-key, relaxed day. Hopefully, Tim and I can both get back to some sort of exercise, healthy eating, and productive routine.
Finally on Saturday afternoon Tim and I headed back to Zillah, Washington to spend some time with his parents. It's been nice to back at their house (and to be able to wash our clothes!).
Sunday we went to church with Tim's parents and spent the day with them. It was a pretty low-key, relaxed day. Hopefully, Tim and I can both get back to some sort of exercise, healthy eating, and productive routine.
