Our small family get-together

I can't believe weeks have gone by since our vacation on the Jersey Shore. Summer does not offer the same quiet moments to sit down and blog, or perhaps I'm just too exhausted from having the kids home all the time. Either way, the summer can't end without reflecting on our seven days "on the shore" as they say. This was only our second year, but Jason's mother's side of the family has been vacationing there for twenty or more years.

All five of us had a wonderful time playing in the sand, and actually swimming in the ocean - something you rarely get to do up in New England. In New Jersey the water is actually warm enough to stay in for hours, which is exactly what the kids did. Noah would come out to eat and drink and then go back in. His boogie board was permanently attached to his wrist the entire trip.

The main event went far beyond just the five of us though. On the day we arrived, Jason's grandmother celebrated her 90th birthday in grand style with all four of her children, all eight of her grandchildren, as well as her five great-grandchildren. Throw in various spouses and a fiancee and there were 25 of us. Here is the official portrait for the week. It isn't often that a family that spreads from Seattle down to Los Angeles over to Georgia and up to New Hampshire can have a picture like this!

Much to Grandma's delight, she gets to share her birthday with her first great-granddaughter who turned seven this year. Alanya had to get up at three in the morning and endure nearly 10 hours in horrible traffic, but how many of us can say they shared their 7th birthday with their 90 year old great grandma?!

This is one of my favorite pictures we took that week. I happened to glance up and there they were with no one else around, just taking it all in.

For those of you who think we drag Grandma all the way to the beach to sit in a cottage, think again. Every day she makes it down to the beach and most days, with the help of her sons or grandsons, she ventures into the waves for a swim. She draws quite a crowd of onlookers. I actually overheard someone say "Oh my gosh, the old lady from last year is back!" Grandma always finishes her swim with a bunch of us cheering her on as she comes out of the water. It truly is inspiring to see.

More than anything, it is such a gift to be able to spend such a large amount of time with cousins, aunts, and uncles. I think what our family does is a rare thing these days. It isn't easy though, don't get me wrong. One of Jason's cousins was only there about 24 hours before she had to return for work, a few cousins had to leave for a day to work, and a few had to leave early because of other family commitments. But we all wanted to be there and we all made an effort to be in one place for one week. A rare thing for extended families these days. Every year we hope every one of us will return the following August, and maybe one year we won't. Until then, we're going to hold on to every moment.