We're Back!

We just got back yesterday from an almost two week vacation. We went to San Antonio for the 4th of July to celebrate with our families. Then on the 6th, we left with Evan's family to go on a cruise to Alaska. We got back from the cruise on the 13th, spent a few more days in San Antonio, and then came back to Houston. We brought back my sister Lisa with us and she will be staying with us for a little over two weeks. We are keeping her while my parents are going to Alaska for a belated anniversary celebration. We have a lot of fun activities planned for while she is here including going to an Astros game, hopefully going to a Dynamo game, lots of cooking and baking, maybe some sewing, practicing driving (she just got her driver's permit), and going shopping. Her is a picture from when she graduated high school back at the beginning of June.



We are really proud of her and excited that she is here in Houston with us for the next two weeks!

Cousin's Reunion 2008

This past weekend I attended the Espy Cousin's Reunion with my sweet mother-in-law Judy and sister-in-law Page. My niece and nephew Elizabeth and James also went with us. Evan's mom's side of the family gets together every year for what they call the Cousin's Reunion. Originally it started out when Judy was a teenager when her mother and all of her first cousins and their kids (the girls) would get together during the summer in West Texas. It has carried on for over 40 years now and is a family tradition that has grown to include all of the children and grandchildren of Judy and her cousins. I started attending the reunions once Evan and I were engaged. I come from a big family so I enjoy getting to meet and continually learn about this very loving extended family of mine.

While men are welcome, and some regularly attend, they are always outnumbered by the female members of the family. Evan, Dave (Page's husband), and John (my father-in-law) all stayed in San Antonio and hung out this time but they usually attend when it is our group's turn to host the reunion. We hosted in 2005 and should be up again in 2010. This year it was in beautiful Fredericksburg, TX and the attendance was great! While not everyone stayed for the entire weekend, there were about 60 or so people that made it to the reunion over the weekend. Here are some of my favorite pictures:

James amused himself with the air-conditioner in our hotel room for about 20 minutes.



Susie (left) and Elizabeth (right) played with Elizabeth's Littlest Pet Shop toys. Susie and Elizabeth are second cousins but Susie is Evan and Page's first cousin once removed. This was a huge step for Elizabeth who has been VERY shy in the past :)



From left: Elizabeth, Page, Judy, James, and me in our coordinated outfits that Judy made for us. Aren't we cute?!?!



Marietta is the last "original" Espy cousin that still attends the reunion. We had a surprise birthday celebration for here because she celebrates her 94th birthday this week.



These are all of the women from Judy's generation that attended the reunion this year (minus one or two that had left before Saturday night). They have all been so welcoming of me and I look forward to seeing them each year.