We had the most awesome, fun family reunion today, with a belated birthday party for me. The whole family was here (first picture), with the exception of Brooklyn and her mom, Cindy. Brooklyn is doing much better and is home from the hospital but she didn't feel up to spending the day in the park with us. I'm sure we'll be able to photoshop their pictures into the picture. There's a space for them beside the rest of their family, Rob and Anson. It was great having the three out-of-town families come so we could all catch up on family news and give the cousins a chance to play together again. Sara and Amy did a great job of organizing the food, games, and prizes. Sara had a wonderful cake made for me. It was scrapbook themed and looked beautiful. I hated to cut it, but I did and it was delicious. I've got over 200 pictures to scrapbook now. It was a wonderful, happy event. Sara also had t-shirts made for all of us with the MacKenzie motto and crest on it. The group picture was taken before the shirts were distributed though.

We didn't even get rained on, in spite of it having rained earlier in the day...a great day...no drama, no injuries, nothing but fun.

Girl Down

Four-year old Brooklyn is in the hospital for a few days recovering from a nasty bug that lowered her blood sugar level dangerously. The poor girl is starting a 24-hour fast tonight and an endoctrinologist is coming to see her tomorrow. Hopefully she'll be home and feeling better by the weekend. The boy in the middle picture is her brother Anson. Their Mom is going to spend the night tonight in the bed he's sitting on, while Dad takes Anson home - he spent last night there with Brookie.

Unpaid Advertisement - Princess House

A few entries ago I mentioned having a Princess House party and several of the commenters asked what Princess House stuff is. I only have a few pieces - but they advertise "the best quality cookware, elegant serveware, fine dinnerware, exclusive decorative accents for special occasions and every day..." It is beautiful stuff, sold at home parties. They have website at www.princesshousecanada.com. And that's all I'm saying about it because I don't want to be one of their unpaid advertisers and I have no intention of ever being involved in their sales, other than as a purchaser. They have a very generous hostess rewards program too.

Brothers

These cuties are 2-month old Alex and 2-year old Kenny MacKenzie. They're in town with their parents for the family reunion this weekend. I'm having fun bonding with these little guys, spending time with them and their parents. Kenny loves his little brother and has adapted well to having a new member of his family. I think they'll be great friends as they grow up. At least they know Grammie loves them.

Baby Smiles

This is my youngest grandchild - 2-month old Alexander Lloyd MacKenzie - my second son's second son. We don't see him and his big brother, 2-year old Kenny, and parents very often because they live 3 hours south of us, but they're here for the week while Mike attends a business course. And, of course, they're here for the big reunion party on Saturday. They came by the house last night just as my Princess House party was wrapping up, and stayed to visit. I'll get to see a lot of this happy little smiler and his family this week.

Sitting Pretty

Eloise has a new trick...she can sit by herself...for about 10 seconds...and then gravity, and a round bottom, take over. It's a start though. She really seemed to like the feel of the cool grass on her bare feet. We'll work at improving her sitting stamina over the summer and before we know it she'll be cutting teeth, crawling, walking, going to school, graduating, moving away from home, getting married....oh dear. Maybe we'll keep her a little baby for awhile longer.

Grandmother Goose

Mum loves most animals, but most particularly cats and birds - any kind of birds. She lives in a first floor apartment with a patio and always puts seeds out so the birds will come. She loves to watch them as they fly around and eat the food she provides. Her cat, Munch, likes to watch them too, but she's not allowed out (luckily for the birds) so she just watches them through the window.

The other day in Winnipeg, we went down to The Forks, where the Red and Assiniboine Rivers meet and enjoyed the walk along the river bank. Mum got as close to the Canada geese there as she could, feeding them bits of her sandwich left over from lunch. I think she actually expected them to come eat out of her hand.

She taught her children to love and care for the gentle creatures too, and if it weren't for allergies I'm sure I'd have a pet or two in my home...budgies or a cat or two.