family gatherings... and fall!?

Over the course of the past week or so, the changes are becoming more obvious - a mite of chill in the night air, darkness coming minutes earlier... and the tides of fall are creeping in. I'd like to say that I don't really mind, because I like the four seasons, but I love summer, and with fall arriving it means that summer is gone and three months are gone and time is marching faster faster faster. So, I have mixed feelings. Of course, this fall will be super exciting - the bebe is coming soon and our lives will change and I'm looking forward to meeting this little guy. Things I'll be missing? : the late light, the hot days and the energy of summer.

SO! The weekend was full of family events - one from my side and one from Steve's side. On Saturday, my aunt Zella and I drove out to Heckston (30 minutes east of Ottawa) to attend a gathering of my great great aunts' descendants. I'd never met any of these people before, and even with name tags and stars denoting what person/family/line you came from, each conversation started with the somewhat complicated task of determining how we were related. There were a few family trees on the wall, and it boggled - boggles - my mind just how large a person's complete family tree would be. Even just going back to my paternal grandmother's sister's side and seeing her lineage (and my great grandmother's, on a smaller, more compact spread) sprawl across the wall ... eeeeyikes. I'd love to see the same trees and twigs of my paternal grandfather and my maternal grandparents too, and see pictures and imagine the number of people that would be there at a complete family gathering. And eeeesh! that's not even including my new family, the Brinkmans. My mom and dad joined us on Sally McCrady's farm (my second cousin twice removed or ??) before the four of us drove back into Ottawa, and then on to Gatineau. Steve had the grill fired up and was rolling out the dough - pizzas on the grill for supper .... yum. Mom, Steve and I caught the last two sets of the gold medal game of the Junior NORCECA tournament, in which the Canadian guys got the silver medal handed to them by a stronger and more organized and mature looking American squad. On Sunday morning mom and pops took to the skies, and Steve and I to the roads, both going west. We made it to the cottage on the Crowe with plenty of time to spare before the Brinkman clan descended with food and kiddies and more food... these get togethers are always food-oriented, and I have NO problem with that whatsoever. We ate, talked, ate, ate ate ate ate and then everyone went home... it was nice, though, to see family AND to get some baby tips from some of the ladies. Unfortunately, my camera lived in the darkness of the purse in the car all weekend, and I don't have any pics to post, not even the bump at 26 weeks... woooops. Well, tomorrow I will take pics. There are no more family gatherings on the schedule but I am meeting up with my best best best friend Lindsey Bayne tomorrow, and I'll make sure that I take the Nikon out of its case... right, yes. I'll remember. Family, friends, fall.... moving baby in the belly... I do love the happenings and the changes, and all of these things - the best things - though coming and going, and coming and going again, are, thankfully, always around... or always around the corner.