A mini family reunion

My soon-to-be 87 year old great-aunt Marianne, who lives in Canada, is relocating to Iowa to be near her step-son and move into an assisted living facility.  While she's still pretty independent, it's probably best she make the transition to be closer to family and be somewhere people can care for her, if needed.  So, it was bittersweet on Sunday as we all gathered to wish her good luck on the next chapter in her life!

Call it a farewell party/birthday party/early Easter celebration, it was nice getting to see almost everyone together in one house, healthy and happy.  My grandma made it out, my aunt and uncle who live in Kalamazoo made the drive in, and my two other uncles were there as well.  My mom cooked a delicious meal with some help from me and my aunt Mary.  And that fabulous cake was brought by my aunt Mary from a bakery near Plainwell.

We all arrived around 2ish and had some appetizers, while sitting around and catching up.  The boys were content munching on food and playing with Lego's and puzzles.  It was warm enough for them to take a dip in the hot tub too, which was a hit!

I'm sure with Marianne's move it will be much harder to see her now and I certainly hope that she'll come back to Michigan at some point to visit with everyone.  But, it's understandable at her age if she isn't able to.  Which is why it was hard to say goodbye when the evening was over.  I tried to take lots of pictures of the boys with both Marianne and my grandma since they don't/won't get to see them as often as we'd like.

After dessert and gifts, the boys got washed up and in their pajamas for the drive home.  But, they had to squeeze in some board games with Uncle John before we left!  It's fun to see the boys interact more with my family as they're getting older.  We had a great afternoon, although we'll miss Marianne very much!