"Parker-Meservy Reunion" OR Can you believe we fit 45 people into this house?)

For those of you who don't know, we had a Parker-Meservy reunion from Thursday, July 30th to Tuesday, August 4th. It originated from JaNae's desire to see Grandma Meservy (Mom M). JaNae was going to fly out to California, but then thought, "If I bring Grandma out here, everyone can see her (meaning those who live in Alabama). Long story short, it ended up that EVERYONE wanted to visit with Grandma (well, she IS an awesome lady!) so the out-of-state kids all ended up traveling to Alabama as well.

Where did everyone stay; you ask? Well, cheap...*ahem...frugal people that we are...

Anna's family (of 8) traveled from the Augusta, Georgia area and stayed at JaNae's (no, I don't know where they put everyone---must've been magic). Jason's family traveled from Sacramento, California area and stayed in the basement apartment of Amanda's folks. Ian and Jessica (and their 2 Great Danes), from Mississippi, stayed in her folk's home here in Enterprise that hasn't sold yet, and Royal's family stayed with us, as did Mom. Jacob's family lives here in Enterprise and Kira's family lives in Dothan, about 45 minutes away. The reunion included Rick and Arline who live nearby in Newton and Arline's daughters' four kids who live in Dothan. Forty-five people in all. In our house. 'Nuf said.

There was lots of talking, swimming, and eating. LOTS of noise and laughter. We had tacos one night and I didn't think I'd ever be able to stop frying tortillas. On Saturday we had a barbecue and swimming after family pictures in the park (THAT was an adventure with all the heat and humidity!) We had a lot of help with the food-mostly from the guys that time. Jim was at the grill and he cooked about 50 burgers, 60 sausages/hot dogs and about 25 chicken breasts. We had a few sides as well and ate lunch, dinner, and leftovers the next day on all that. One of the meals was not at our house. It was in the apartment that Jason and Michelle were staying at, in the basement of Amanda's folk's home. I think Jim was off that night. The rest of the time, he "slept" during the festivities, and got up about 5:00 or 6:00 p.m. I think he might have finally used the ear plugs I gave him.

Every day of the reunion we had rain. Not just some sprinkles but storms. Nice thing about southern storms is that while they may spring up suddenly, they don't usually last all day. Some days we didn't have everyone here but the average count was about 40 people. Mornings were spent on their own and somewhere between noon and two o'clock they would start dropping by. Throughout the week, on various days, there was also games for the kids, a family home evening, and a trip to a small zoo. And of course swimming when weather permitted. There are lots of little "fish" amongst our grandchildren.

The zoo was a real hit. It is off the beaten path, but very enjoyable; in part because the owner, in his "down-under" accent, gives a very personal tour and tells you about each animal. There was also hands-on opportunity with the snakes. Some of the little ones surprised me with their lack of fear. I took lots of pictures but did not touch the snakes...nor did I run away, so I am improving. My favorite animal was the Ligers. I thought that ligers were only a "Napoleon Dynamite" thing (this is where you go "duh, Jan"). Wow, they are huge cats! There were also animals that visitors could feed and little goats running around. It was obvious that Mr. Mike, the owner, has a personal relationship with each animal. If you want to check it out here's a link: http://mikeszoocritters.com/index.html

Sunday was great, with most everyone attending our ward. The Bishopric noted our large family in attendance and Mom bore her sweet, strong, testimony and then a few more of us in the family shared their testimonies too. I love to hear the testimonies of our family members! After meetings Miles was ordained an Elder by the brethren of the family and a few friends. I am so glad that most of our family could be there at church...and that it wasn't for my funeral.

I will have better pictures when Stacy Thomas finishes her editing. She was so sweet to brave the heat and humidity with all of US to take pictures. She took hundreds! Thanks also to Kristy Rasmussen who was her "helper" and got the attention of the little ones (and some of the adults) with a cute bird puppet. Rick and Arline's puppy got everyone's attention when he took off with the puppet.

I want to thank all who came, all who helped. I know there were lots of sacrifices made for everyone to be here and I appreciate it. Many contributed to the food and fun and if tempers flared I only noticed it among the 12 and under group. I'm not saying that there weren't flaws in our planning or that I didn't get frustrated with food and water spilled on the floor. The two central air conditioners couldn't compete successfully with all the body heat and "close the door!" often followed the kids outside and many were driven crazy by our noisy bird. But despite minor problems, they were, in fact, really just little hiccups. No one slipped and broke anything, no one got sick, the toilets never got stopped up (in fact, we never ran out of t.p.) and we never ran out of food or conversation. Despite the crowded conditions in our living/dining area-I think everyone enjoyed themselves.

I am ever-so-grateful that Mom was able to come out to visit with us. We all love her so very much--what a wonderful matriarch we have! All in all, I think the reunion was a success. There is no way to fully explain what a great time we had and the memories that were made but I hope that each individual felt it was worth it. I'd love to do it again...I hope this is just the first of many.

How could I ever imagine many years ago, that my family would be this big; this awesome? The Lord has blessed me greatly!

P.S. Miles' mission recommendation was submitted last week so we should be hearing by the end of the month on where he will be assigned. Out here, other churches have "mission trips" that usually only last from a few weeks to a couple of months. People are surprised to learn he will be gone for 2 years. Maybe talking about his mission to others will open up missionary opportunities for us.