On September 27, we had a family gathering at my nephew Dan Jr. and his wife Laura's house outside of Warren, OH. Dan's parents are still in the area because Dan and Laura went to Jamaica to celebrate the 50th birthday of Laura's cousin. Their daughters Amy and Emily are way too young to stay by themselves, so their grandparents came from Lancaster, MA to watch them. Dan and Laura have returned, but other "commitments" kept them from enjoying this event. Dan Jr. was at a cabin in Pennsylvania with some of his friends from Kent State's Delta Upsilon Fraternity branch. When we arrived, Laura was on her way to the aforementioned cousin's birthday party in Eastlake, OH. If you were expecting an adults only event, you would be disappointed. Amy and Emily did not accompany Laura. They made this a very festive event.
Besides Dan Sr., Patty (The Grandparents), myself and the "little angels", the participants were my sister Maggie and her husband Mike (who drove my brother Bob and me to this event), my sister Kathleen, my brother Joe, and Dan Sr.'s brother Mike and his wife Joanne. We enjoyed a delicious dinner of grilled/barbecued chicken with a honey mustard "glaze", Tortellini Salad, croissants, and fruit salad. Dan and Patty provided most of these items, but Joanne made the fruit salad from fruit purchased at a Farmer's market. The food was delicious. Dessert consisted of Marie Callender's Chocolate Peanut Butter and Lemon Meringue pies, both courtesy of Maggie and Mike, a Coconut Cream Pie of unknown origin, Pumpkin Pie, and some other desserts. The Pumpkin Pie and the other desserts were not opened because there were plenty of options for a "small" gathering. The desserts were enjoyable, too.
The entertainment consisted of socialization among the guests. One major topic mentioned were brothers and sisters. After one of my great-nieces asked Kathleen about religious sisters during a previous visit. Kathleen came prepared. She brought some pictures of nuns. One picture was from her order (Sisters of Notre Dame). Kathleen was not in this photo. She found another picture of five nuns from a different order who were biological sisters. Unfortunately, Amy and Emily's attention span was too short to receive the full lesson, but the pictures were left at the party, so they might receive the education at a later date. The discussion also offered a review of the brothers and sisters at the event. Since Dan Sr. and his brother were nearby in the house, (The discussion was held on the patio.) they were not emphasized.
Beyond the usual socialization, Amy and Emily were the center of attention. Their main activity was handing out tickets for unknown offenses! It was later revealed that the "crime" was too many people on the couch. Somehow, I was not charged with a crime. My tickets were for being "good", though that almost changed when I suggested that they should be careful with what looked like drumsticks because they could have injured somebody. I was briefly deemed to be naughty, but it was immediately reversed. By the way, the bathroom was the jail. There was also a puppet show that I missed because I was looking at the Ohio State-Cincinnati Football game at the time. Amy also played the piano/synthesizer for us, but most of us only heard the music. These girls sure have a lot of energy. It comes from their father. Surprisingly, there was no yoga demonstration, but the gathering was still memorable.
As the girls were up way past their bedtime of 7:30 P.M., they prepared for bedtime after 9:30 P.M. with a lot of energy. Maggie, Mike (Schabel), Bob, and I were the last to leave. After the drive home, we relaxed for the rest of the evening. It was a nice event, but Dan Jr. and Laura were missed. Perhaps, they will be there for the next event at their house. If it's Amy's First Communion next spring, it would be strange if they weren't there!
Until the next report, enjoy life!!
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