17 June 1984 Father's Day Picnic

Sunday, Father's Day

June 17,1984

Sunday was a most wonderful day. My parents held a party on their farm and invited all the relatives, even my IGA "cousins". The invitation instructed the guests to bring their families, a covered dish, their lawn chairs, their swimming suits, and their fishing gear. When we arrived at noon, there were twenty cars parked in the barnyard. My grandfather's three sisters made certain that many of their childred, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren came. (29 people). My grandmother's sister and three of her brothers brought their extended families (25 more-54 so far). My mother's family, her brother's family, and her sister's family came (16 more-70 so far). My father's sister's family and one of his brother's family carne (21 more-91 so far). Two of my father's aunts brought the families of my father's cousins (16 more-l07 so far). There were at least sixteen people who work for my parents present (that means at least 123 people). I may have missed a few babies that were not tall enough to be seen when I tried to take a headcount and I may have counted a few of the active toddlers twice when they darted from one group of grown-ups to another.

I usually go to most smorgasbords and sample a bit of everything--Of course, I'm stuffed but that's why I do it. At this bountiful feast I could not eat a bite of everything. There was just too much to try. There were at least four different recipes of chicken and noodles (and I know that two of the noodles were homemade), all kinds of macaroni salads, baked beans, green bean casseroles, fried chicken, ham, vegetable salads, fruit salads, brownies, cookies, cakes (at least 5 chocolate cakes, 2 chocolateeangelfood cakes, a spice cake, and Kim's scratch caramellcocoanut-almond cake) and pies. I missed Aunt Helen's butterscotch pie--that was the first to disappear; but, I had delicious rhubarb pie. Even Uncle Forrest had so much to eat that he did not even try to swipe my brownie, and he has been swiping brownies ever since he learned to pull little girls' pigtails. (This year Lesley was the one who had her pigtails tugged). This group also consumed 5 watermelons, a keg of Coors beer, 720 cans of pop, several pots of coffee, and lots of Kool-Aid.

Don and I tried to photograph everyone. Don took pictures as the people filed into the kitchen to serve

the selves. (Look for Uncle Forrest in several pictures). We may have missed some of the people who came later in the afternoon and stayed only for supper.

Lots of people fished. The bluegills weren't very big so lOSt people threw the fish back until the next reunion.

Little kids and non-swimmers can't play in the pond because the pond does not have a gradual slope to its bottom. The swimmers have to dive in from a pier that Eric built last year and have to tread water because the depth

varies from 6-20 feet. Too many people bounced on the end of the pier and it tipped over. The pier was balanced well enough so that it went back to almost its original position and it did not flip over and hit anyone on the head. No one was hurt but some people who did not intend to swim did. Uncle Cecil, the engineer, repaired the pier while he had all those strong backs to help.

Brian, Lesley, and I hiked around Devil's Backbone. We walked around and through the creek and we looked for fossils in the limestone. We found lots of neat stuff and took it home to put in our cigar boxes. I made the children leave before they were ready because the mosquitoes seemed to think I was their bountiful feast. Brian and Lesley had no bites, but I had ten bites that were swelling fast. We went back to the farm where the purple martins that live in the birdhouse keep the mosquitoes under control.

Don played softball with some of the more energetic cousins in the late afternoon as the temperature cooled a bit. I spent the rest of the day making sure that everybody had been introduced to everyone else and catching up on family gossip. No one said to me, "What a big girl you are growing up to be!". Now, they say, "You are getting a lot of gray in your hair." If the comments bother me too much, I'll color it before the next reunion, but I never could figure out how to get smaller without cutting off my legs at the knees.

We left the party at lOP.M. and there were still 30 people there. Most of them were friends of Patrick and Dane. They were having a bonfire by the pond and listening to rock and roll. I must be "a grownup" because I was ready to admit that I was tired and ready to go home.