Smith Reunion

The second weekend of August we had the Dale and Margaret Smith Reunion. We were supposed to have the big one this year in Idaho but it got postponed because of Covid-19. So we decided to have our own and since we couldn't really go anywhere with our big group we did the reunion at Dale and Margaret's house and around here. It was so much fun and turned out really amazing!

We started Thursday afternoon. We met around lunch time and all the kids went right into playing outside and keeping each other entertained until lunch was ready.

The girl table at lunch- For so long it was just Lylia and Lily and now look at all those girls!

Then after lunch Aaron brought an "All About You" paper for each kid to fill out. They had markers and had fun creating, filling out, and coloring. It had all their favorites and all about them. They were fun to read and to see all the different things that they put.

The dinner bell came in handy especially on Thursday to help round up the kids for each activity and get everyone's attention.

All the kids filling out their papers- I love that they all took it seriously and had fun talking to each other as they were filling them out. I loved seeing the older siblings help the younger ones. I love seeing all the family dynamics and all the smiles that happened this weekend.

Paige's Paper

While the kids filled out their papers, it gave the adults a chance to visit and Robert flew the drone over the house and he got some great footage of the house.

The next activity was charades. I loved observing this activity. All the kids were chanting the name of whomever was up next and seeing the smiles and hearing laughter as people were acting out was really fun.

I really just love seeing everyone's interactions with each other and the love and fun we have when we are together.

Then we all tie dyed family shirts. Aaron created the logo on the shirt and it turned out so good. This was another fun one to watch and see the older siblings help the younger ones and seeing people's creativity.

The tie dying kind of happened in shifts. While the adults were finishing up their shirts, the kids, all on their own, were gathering on the porch and were taking pictures on the front porch. I took advantage of their gathering and snapped a few pictures.

Next up Anna planned some relay races. Some of the games were leap frog, piggy back races, doing a puzzle, mummy wrap with toilet paper, chugging a can of soda, seeing who could blow up a bubble with some bubblegum, throwing a football, jump rope, and cart wheels. We got divided into 2 teams and decided what each person would do. It was so much fun and it was fun to see the smiles and the competitive nature and also the cheering on each other.

Then the parachute got brought out for a little bit while a few of us got prepared for the next activity.

Corgan and his trusty guitar- he was playing whenever there was some down time.

Then I helped direct some canvas painting. I printed out a little paper that had each step and helped walk them through it all. It was another fun one to watch all their creativity and seeing all the different paintings at the end even though we were all painting the same thing.

Then we had some dinner and then the rest of the evening it was just some fun down time. The adults tried to figure out the bike ride logistics for the next day which was quite the conversation with everyone's opinions. :) The kids had fun playing outside, played hide and seek and tag, and then once it started to get dark the kids were playing games inside and I caught this cute moment. Cade was Baylor's little buddy and was constantly doing all her demands. :)

Once it was dark enough outside those that were still at the house played some laser tag.

Friday morning everyone was up bright and early to meet up at Hyak for a 20+ mile bike ride down to Rattlesnake Lake. The first 2 miles is through a tunnel which was pretty awesome and all the kid's favorite part of the whole ride.

It was fun to see everyone disappear down the tunnel. Paige, Baylor, and I stayed back with Nona and Anna and Eliza (Anna and Eliza were planning on going on the ride but Eliza got car sick on the way up and threw up). We brought Paige's bike so she got to ride in some of the tunnel before driving down to meet the riders at a check point.

Here's our checkpoint where we waited for about an hour for everyone to meet up. It was a beautiful day and the scenery around us was gorgeous. It was nice to visit and eat a few snacks.

Here they come! It was fun to see everyone and see how they were doing. They were all pretty hungry at this point but had 5 more miles to go. 

                                  Paige joined them at this point and rode the last leg to the lake.

They finally all made it and they were definitely all ready for lunch.

We had a few hours that everyone just chilled and recovered from the ride and then in the evening we went over to Anna's backyard for dinner. It worked out perfectly and the kids stayed busy on the swings and playing yard games. We had tin foil dinners and just enjoyed each other's company.

This game was definitely a win for the night and the kids loved it and it is something we would do again. It is a game called Left, Right, Center and you usually use pennies but Aaron brought a big bag of candy. The winner got three candies and everyone else got one at the end of each round. They were chanting and yelling and had SO much fun.

I made a peach cobbler and a blackberry cobbler for dessert and I had never done blackberry before and it was SO good!

Saturday things didn't go quite as planned because of rain but it was a really nice and relaxing day. They played some games in the morning and Nona got some cuddles during it.

Then we went on a walk along the Soos Creek.

We had some sandwiches for lunch and really most of the day the adults were on the front porch visiting and the kids loved looking at old pictures of themselves on the computer and played games inside.

The girls first got a turn in the hot tub and I think some of the boys went in later in the evening.

Then we had dinner and the weather turned out perfect. Since it was overcast these pictures that we got of everyone turned out so good. I sure love this family I married into!

Then we had fun with water balloons. The kids and adults had a blast. We started off with sending some water balloons over the roof with the giant slingshot and a water balloon toss.

Then it was the gauntlet- those brave enough ran through with everyone else on the sides pelting them with water balloons. I was up on top of a ladder with the camera and it was so fun to watch and I love the pictures/reactions that I got.

Then the little kids got their turn. All the younger ones got to throw the balloons at the older kids/adults. This worked out perfectly since most of the time the little ones just want to throw balloons at people and not necessarily have balloons thrown at them. This way also the level of throwing was a little less than the next round.

Paige was going full out throwing them. It was cute to watch!

Then Aaron and Mike and the older boys went at each other. And this would be the reason why the little kids got their turn earlier and stayed far away. The boys were definitely out for blood and throwing them as hard as they could. It was pretty entertaining to watch but I'm glad that I was safe up on my ladder snapping away getting some great shots.

Then to end our night we had an Oreo taste testing. It was a fun way to end the evening.

And this priceless moment got the most laughs- It was so funny to watch them eat this "ultimate" Oreo they created.

Later that evening some of the older boys along with Aaron and Mike took a late night dip in the lake. I walked over with Nate, Paige, and Lily to watch and observe and be a part of the fun.

Sunday we got permission to have Sacrament meeting together. It was so nice to be able to do that and just have this personal, family meeting. Then afterwards we had some egg salad sandwiches for lunch and some ginger ale and root beer taste testing.

For a year that has been full of unknowns and things being cancelled, this reunion was such a ray of happiness and full of joy and fun. I'm so grateful that we were able to get together and do these fun things even in all its simplicity. I love watching my kids interact and play with their cousins and have that relationship. I love spending time with family and I'm grateful for the Smith family.