I heart Grandma Camp

My amazing mother has hosted this event for hmmm...six years now. This is a modern day miracle because our numbers are growing exponentially and many of us have moved far away from the mother-ship. Yet, somehow she still manages to pull it off with flying colors. This is the main gist of Grandma Camp:

• Everyone wears the same thing (boys & girls & moms). So, we barely have to pack anything. We wash these outfits every night and then voila! You are ready to go the next morning. Also, we can keep track of the littles better when everyone is wearing the same bright green shirt. You get the picture.
• We usually put in our orders of what meals we love. My dear mother spends who knows how long, preparing our favorites: spinach lasagna, burritos (or some type of dish with beans. I mean, we must've eaten pintos 3-4x every week growing up. It just wouldn't be home without them), jambalaya, and of course, topped off with Blue Bell.
• Each day, we usually take a field trip somewhere. Favorites: Blue Bell Factory, Bluebonnets, Houston Children's Museum (incredible), the park (simple and perfect), NASA, Chuck & Nancy's "ranch," Miller Theater, and the Houston Temple.
• A Tea Party. The children dress up in their Sunday best and sit around Merlsie's dining table They sip peppermint tea using her lovely dishes, eat dainty cookies and sandwiches, and have a delightful conversation. They love this part.
• A gigantic van is usually rented to fit everyone. Merlsie had a magnetic sign made for the van which reads, "Watch out! It's Grandma Camp!" I had the honors of driving the beast this year...and mercy! was it a beast! (I'm bummed I didn't get a picture of this. As you can see, my picture portfolio here is a little on the skimpy side).
• This year we did a little "service project." The women-folk put together these darling fleece blankets for the babies down in Mexico, coming home from the hospital. My girlies loved it.
• The children and mothers play, talk, and laugh. Laugh and laugh and laugh. It's a chance for the cousins to bond...and they do bond. They're all little buddies--just the way it should be. And, us women have so much fun talking, working in the kitchen, giving eachother pep-talks and ideas. just magical.

We all love and look forward to this little bright spot of the year. It normally falls in the springtime. Thank you Grandma Merlsie! Here's to another fantastic Grandma Camp! (The last picture has nothing to do with Grandma Camp at all. I just love this house. It's also on my parent's street. I drool everytime we go past it).

We had a bonus of having Adam's two sisters join us this year. We're all just one big family anyways.

And, as a side-note, us siblings threw together a surprise 40th Anniversary party for our parents. It was so much fun to plan and then to pull off. Ahh...all those years of Student Council paid off. At least I know how to operate a helium tank! BTW, fyi Costco enlarges pictures for a STEAL!! You can get a 20x30 poster-size for a sheer $9.99. We enlarged eight pictures of my parents through the years. They made us cry.

(Thank you Meesh. I love you too. Let's connect soon. muy bueno.)