The Gang's All Here!

I had such a nice surprise this morning. Mom and I were told that the family was getting together at Hometown Buffet this morning. We have done that before, but there was really no reason that I knew of for this get-together. We got there and met my aunt and uncle that we spend a lot of time with, so mom was comfortable. As we were standing in the crazy long line, I heard something behind me. I turned to see my cousin Lou, she was yelling up to my uncle to say "Hey". She is so funny and loves to give my Uncle Cephus a hard time. That's where the surprise came in. She is from Georgia, but here she was in Connecticut! I looked around and saw more cousins and then my dad's sister....and....my dad's brother. I had no idea they were going to be up here. I was so glad to see them, I got quite emotional. I haven't seen them for a couple of years and didn't know when or even if I might ever see them again. What a blessing to see them! My Auntie Alberta is 87 and my Uncle George is 88. So, all of my dad's sisters and brothers that are still alive were all together again. That was so special. I had to get pictures. Life and time go by too quickly, I want to capture these special moments all the time now. My Auntie Alberta was also able to be with 3 of her kids that live up here. A little bit later some of the grand children and great grandchildren also came in. So there were probably 10 or so of them that came up from Georgia. I had no idea all of them were coming! I'm so glad I got to spend some time talking with Auntie Alberta. I asked her if she still lived in her house by herself and if Uncle George still lived on his own too. She said they both did still live alone. She said she still planted her garden during the summer, with bell peppers, hot peppers, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, and collard greens. She does it all herself. She said she still drives her car, goes to get groceries, and then cooks for Uncle George too. Uncle George's health has gone down, and he also struggles with demetia, but she and her daughters that live down there help take care of him. We had a nice section of the restaurant for the bit of the family that was there. There were quite a few that were unable to be there, but we still managed to have 3 rows of tables. I love my big, crazy, fun, amazing family. Dad's sister, Auntie Ann, with mom
Dad's sister, Auntie Alberta (87), talking with her sister-in-law, brother-in-law and sister, Ann

Dad's brothers, Uncle George (88), and Uncle John

Dad's brother, Uncle Henry with Uncle George
Cousin Lou with her granddaughter, Auntie Alberta's daughter and great granddaughter
Cousins!
Lord, thank you for this time with my family. Thank you for keeping them well so we could see them again. Thank you for allowing me to have such an amazing family. I miss my pappy at times like this, but it's special to be able to be around his brothers and sisters to bring some great memories. Thanks for new memories.