Carter Clan!

We had the fun opportunity to go to the Carter Reunion down in Grass Valley this weekend. It is such a beautiful area and Grant, Steph and Roger, Kathy are so kind to put up with 64 family members using their fantastic cabin, spacious barn, cosy caretaker cabin and their fun 4-wheelers. Thank heavens for "The Barn" where we could turn the boys loose! It was a great weekend. Here are some highlights.

1. Sacrament Meeting/Testimony Meeting: I love hearing the testimonies of members of my family. I appreciated Grant III and Kate and Grant IV example of submitting like a little child. I loved the testimonies shared. I appreciated Uncle Grant's kind words about Dad. This year was made even sweeter by Ben and Janae being able to bless their baby at the cabin.

2. Playing "I'm the Boss" with Andrew, Grant, JD, Mitch, Jenn, and Ben until the wee hours of the morning. It was a fun game to learn even if my sleepy brain shut down at 1:30! The catch phrase "I am the Boss! You will be dealing with me now." was born.

3. The Family History Skits were hilarious! I never realized we had such talent in the family. Thanks to Grandma and my cute cousins for providing props and stories. My kids tonight were talking about Erastus and Dominicus and Grandpa Carter. It was was a great way to get them interested in their heritage.

4. Uncle Roger being punked! Never to be forgotten or duplicated. There was a truck that was parked on the property and my uncles parked their tractor behind it so the people would have to come talk to them (it was very nice they didn't have it towed like the Sheriff suggested) Ammon played the roll of some freaky bearded backwoodsman who came to demand that Uncle Roger move his blasted tractor. He ranted and raved about not caring about private property or the "POE-leece" and how he had been coming there to camp for 10 years and would keep coming. Anyway it all ended with Uncle Rog asking Uncle Grant what they should do and Uncle Grant (who was in on the joke) commented that they should "Beat the sucker up and pulled off the wig! Brave Phillip the Scottish caretaker stood by ready to take action with the first weapon he found which happened to be a teakettle! It will always be remembered in the history of the Carter family. I was impressed by how Unlce Roger handled himself and never lost his temper with the raving lunatic!

5. The "Who is this baby" game that Alli did for the family was a big hit and was enjoyed by all. It was amazing to see how much the kids looked like their parents and even grandparents in the baby pics. It was worth all the work that Alli went through to get those gathered up!

6. Hikes and rides with the family. Even though it was cold, cold, cold we enjoyed a few hikes which inevitably ended up in a water fight (what is it about rocks, water and my brothers that turns me into a little kid about getting them wet?) It is always fun to ride with my kids on the 4-wheelers and see them testing their driving skills.

7. The darling shower that Kathy, Courtney and Caitlin did for Carrie. What a sweet thing to see Carrie and Mike finally blessed with a little angel after 6 years of waiting. It was wonderful to hear their adoption story and how the Lord has comforted them and led them to be blessed with little Ellie. I am so happy for them.

Despite a few flu cases it was a great weekend (obviously I wasn't the one with the flu) I am so grateful to Grandma and Grandpa and Grant, Steph, Roger, Kathy and Mom for all the work they did to get us all together. It has been too many years since we were all together! Families are fun!