Ludwig Family Reunion 2014

I’m sitting here wondering how our Ludwig family reunion this past weekend flew by so quickly!  I can’t believe that we were able to pack so much fun into just a few days, and that it has already been a week since my siblings came rolling into town. 

Part of the reason the weekend went by so quickly is that time flies when you’re having fun, and my siblings and parents are some of the “funnest” people out there.

For example, who else but my dear brother-in-law would think to take PVC pipes and turn them into blow dart guns? (They work very well, by the way.)

Hours of fun right there.  And if I look a little concerned in the background, I was.  There was a full fledged war going on in my parents’ house, and I wasn’t sure if I was prepared to get involved.  And I was probably contemplating what a patient person my mother is to good naturedly let her offspring run through the house blowing darts at each other.

And, who else could turn a family work project into a jovial bonding time?  Nobody quite like these relatives of mine.  We whistled and sang together as we mingled over trenches and paintbrushes.

As the ultimate test of our good natures, we decided to take family pictures while we were together.  Even that ended up being fairly painless if not exactly fun.  Some of the family members clearly had more fun than others (everyone can blame Amelia if the pictures don’t turn out), but I think overall it was a success!

We clean up pretty good after painting fences, if I do say so myself!

Our four days together was full of good food, gunny sack races, sports, snuggles, sleepovers, helicopters, beards, old family movies, and lots of laughs.  I love this family of mine!

I think my kids will remember fondly how Grandma and Grandpa always have sleepovers with them whenever we get together.  All of the kids pile onto blankets and into sleeping bags on the floor wherever we are, and Grandma and Grandpa brave the leaky air mattress next to them so nobody wakes up scared or disoriented  without having a loving Grandma nearby to comfort them.  The rest of the adults all sleep better than usual in the real beds without our children to wake us up.  Maybe it is us adults who will have the fondest memories of the sleepovers!

Wow.  Writing this all down and looking at the pictures again makes me actually pretty bummed that it all had to come to an end and that my siblings are now all at their own homes probably sitting at their computers feeling bummed and looking at pictures too.  Is it time for the next one yet?   It was truly a great family reunion!  Thanks Mom and Dad!

The Great Pumpkin

A few days ago we headed up to Rock Creek Farm to the pumpkin patch.  It could not have been more beautiful!  The weather was warm and the 100 acres of pumpkin fields were gorgeous. 

How could I help but feel cheerful with fresh air, huge pumpkins, no crowds, and the people I love the most running through the fields?

The pumpkins this year were very large.  The boys inspected many to find just the right one for them.  At $6 regardless of size, the boys decided that the bigger the pumpkin, the better!  The chosen fruit were so heavy that only Glenn could carry them.  Every time we thought we had discovered The Great Pumpkin, we would find another bigger and better one just minutes later.  It was the perfect pumpkin patch!

We managed to narrow it down to the very best pumpkins out there in the field.  The kids chose well, that’s for sure!

Once the pumpkins were safely tucked away in the trunk of the van, we headed off for a little pumpkin patch fun at the free blow up slide and hay bale maze.  No wonder the kids (and I) love this place!

After a stream of busy days and weeks, I was so thankful to Glenn that he ditched out on the last day of a conference in Chicago and flew home a day early to make some fun memories with our family.  It was one of those days where I felt like I could breathe deeply and slowly and put my cares behind me for a few hours.

We have a good life (and some great pumpkins)!

Hair-Brained Idea

A few weeks ago I gave Amelia her first haircut.  It came during the stressful time when we were preparing for Glenn to become the bishop, so I do cut myself at least some slack for making a rash decision that I now totally regret.

We were on a hair cutting roll that day.  I had gotten my hair trimmed earlier in the day, then spent the evening cutting Glenn’s hair and all 3 boys’ hair.  Amelia’s bangs had been hanging down into her eyes and were bugging her, so I decided it was time to give them a little trim.

Not such a bad idea, right?  And yes, I do haircuts in my pajama pants!  The problem came when I decided to go a little farther.  While I was at it, I thought I should trim off her little curly mullet in the back.  She has had one adorable curl that has been growing since she was a tiny little thing.  It has grown at a much faster rate than the rest of her hair, so it was several inches down her back.  When the curl was at its best, it was adorable.  At its worst, it was a gnarly little mullet.  It had leaned toward the gnarly mullet side for the past several days, so I decided it was time to go.  After all, she was almost two years old, right?  It was time to get past thinking of her as my little baby.  Or so I momentarily irrationally thought anyway.

In one swift snip, her curl was gone.

It was immediately obvious that the little curl provided a feminine look that was suddenly missing with her suddenly totally straight and short locks.  I was a little sad, but hopeful that I would eventually think it was the right thing to do.  From the look on her face in the above picture, you can see that Amelia was a bit uncertain herself.  And for good reason!

It wasn’t until the next morning when she came running out of her room that my heart truly sank.  No more bouncing curl!  No more adorable hair hanging down her back!  I did not fall in love with her new short hairdo, but still kick myself whenever I see a picture of her former long-haired self.

Too late now, I guess!  Goodbye my sweet baby locks!  I still miss you!  I guess it is a good thing that Amelia is adorable no matter what!