Sunday, July 29, 2012

Pennsylvania Party

My extended family held our first annual Family Reunion on July 14th, and it was a good time!  I had so much fun that I forgot to get out my camera and take pictures.  Whoops.  Those who attended were awesome and beautiful, of course!

The reunion was my mom's side of the family - all of my Nana's kids' kids...with kids.  :)  There were about 35 of us in attendance!  It was the first time I've met my cousin Julie's littlest guy and I haven't seen Craig's 3-year-old twin sons since they were brand-spanking-newborns ("freshly baked").  All the little ones got along very well, and the adults were on best behavior, too!  Although it did get a bit rowdy during a riveting game of Apples to Apples.  :) 

While I was in PA, my mom and I did our own annual tradition - our yearly trip to Knoebel's.  I drive there, she drives back, and we spend the day riding rides and laughing (or crying) like loons.  A huge perk of this park is that it's free admission - you just pay for the rides you want to ride.  The park itself is around a sometimes-small creek... which often floods like a massive river.  They whimsically mark the water lines and it is neat to see how the park keeps on chuggin' like its two trains despite being inundated with water that gets deeper than I am tall.

I didn't take many pictures here, either, because my mom and I were having such a good time.  Still, when we stopped to gather our steam on a bench and were greeted by two geese, I snapped a photo:


After that, we were back on our feet!  Funnily, I've always thought that once I grew up, I'd be the mom on the sidelines with the stroller.  Yet as I get older, I get a huge thrill out of the barf-worthy Galleon (a giant boat that swings back and forth like a pendulum) and I will never pass up a chance to spin like the dickens on a Tilt-a-Whirl.  

And yet, my favorite ride is the Skyride (a ski lift).  One year while I was in college, my mom and I brought along Ali and my Nana on our Knoebel's trip.  The Knoebel's folks were amazing and actually stopped the Skyride so Nana could get on it.  I can still remember Nana waving at me as we rode.  Nana passed away on Thanksgiving in 2005, and now this ride holds a deeply special meaning for my mom and me.  In tribute, we always ride the Skyride first and then proceed to cry for and wave to Nana, dedicating the day to her.  <3  

How do you make your memories?  

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