Re-connecting

It has been a busy weekend so far. Friday night, my son and his girlfriend came down from college and my older son and his girlfriend stopped by and we ordered pizza and had a nice evening together. I love when both the boys are around. I love how they have become good friends over the years.

Today we were so busy cooking and cleaning for a small family dinner party. My husband's cousin was here from Colorado. We haven't seen her for 30 years. Why the first time I met her was at her wedding and we haven't seen them since. She came East to spend time with my mother in law who is her deceased dad's sister. I think she is searching for some family history that will help her deal with her dad's passing.

My mother in law took her to the house on the vineyard where she and her brother spent their summers 60 years ago. They knocked on the door and the owners let them in to take a tour of the house. Lo and behold, much of the furniture was still in place as it was when my mother in law was a child. I know that meant a great deal to her, as she is in her 80's now and lately she has been talking about wanting to go home to the Vineyard. So she actually got to spend some time in her home from long ago.

Dinner was actually a big hit. Grilled chicken and salmon,pasta and pesto(made from our garden fresh basil), broccoli, and salad. My brother in law brought a pumpkin cheesecake for dessert. Everyone ate heartily and raved about the food.

I was worried about how it would go tonight, but it went so well. My mother in law was thrilled to have her kids and grandkids and her niece all together under one roof after 30 years. There has been too little family time on my husband's side of the family. On my side, my cousins are all close and have many memories that we have shared over the years.

When we kissed our long lost cousin good-bye, we promised that we would try to get together again soon and promised that we would not let another 30 years pass.

It will be interesting to see if we can keep that promise.