Family Reunion / A Grandma's Legacy

This weekend we traveled to Ohio to attend and celebrate a reunion of my mom's family.  Most of my mother's family stayed settled in Ohio near where she grew up, but there are pieces of the family scattered across the country - in Florida, Michigan, California, and Arizona.  We seldom all manage to get together at one time, but this weekend we got pretty close.  There were a precious few missing, but overall it was an amazing turnout and we so enjoyed getting to see everyone.  We're very lucky to be able to share our lives with each other and see our family continue to grow and grow and grow.  We are linked by one very special lady, my grandmother Elvera.

This is Elvera.

She has SIX daughters

FIVE sons-in-law

SIXTEEN grandchildren (11 pictured here)

THIRTY great-grandchildren (25 pictured here)

. . . and still counting!

(Our newest addition Benjamin will be #31!)

What an amazing legacy for one woman to have.  She is the 

heart of our family, 

the matriarch, 

the common sense, 

the faith, 

and the card shark, 

with zero-tolerance for bullshit.  

She makes the best pies (coconut creme is my favorite,) her door is always open, and when you come to visit she always has a hug, an "I love you," and she's genuinely happy to see you.  She considers herself very blessed.

And so do we, 

for having her in our lives.