Memorial Day + family = priceless
Ahhh...the coals are dying down to ash, hubby's in the hot tub, and all the food has been put in baggies for the kids to take home. What a great party - all my kids and their friends, from the step-dad to the nanny, have been here today. I find it so wonderful and amazing that whenever we all get together for a party my children invite their friends from childhood. I suppose this isn't surprising in most families, but we have moved so many times I am not sure what to call "home." I lived in California for the first 41 years, so I feel a bit transient. And although we have moved across the Twin Cities at least 6 times, Minneapolis is home for my kids. One of Alex's friends, Meredith, was his first friend when we moved to Hopkins from Santa Barbara. He was in the first grade and got teased on the school bus, so he sat next to Meredith, who was always teased for being "that girl who sings." Now, 17 years later, they are still close, even though she has been living in Cleveland and Los Angeles and he has lived in Wisconsin, Jordan, Texas and Syria, with numerous stops in between. Joe had friends here today from grade school in Northeast and college at Macalester. They are now in their early twenties and have had lots of life experience; yet, whenever there is word of a party we know who will be here. It is a great feeling to be a mom and look out across the picnic table and see all the smiles and horseplay; I feel like I really got it right. During the day they are all "professionals," whether that means studying as grad students or working for the man, although when it is party time they turn into children once more, tossing frisbees and playing poker. I can't imagine what my life had been like if I hadn't had these wonderful children.