Our family and friends are so very important to us. While Nina comes from a medium-size family, Galen has quite a large and diverse extended family—his parents have 11 siblings between them, so he has 17 aunts and uncles, nearly 30 cousins, and all the children of those cousins! One of our favorite summer traditions is attending an annual family reunion where we get to reconnect with them for an extended weekend!
Galen’s Family
Whenever we get out of town to see Galen’s family, we always have some sort of outdoor adventure: hiking, skiing, canoeing, or swimming. Whether at the family’s lakeside cabin or at their village home, there’s always lots of singing around a fire. And they have a wonderful tradition of harmonizing Christmas carols around the piano on Christmas Eve, followed by sharing eggnog and poppyseed cake.
Nina’s Family
With Nina’s family, we enjoy other holidays and special events. We chat, look through photos, tease each other, and reminisce. Galen and Nina usually bring the soup and a dessert, even though Nina’s mom always provides “enough food to feed an army,” as she likes to say. Often Nina’s best friend shows up with something delicious as well. Sometimes Nina’s brother brings his guitar, or somebody sits down at the piano, or we all just sing along with the radio.
Our Cats!
Here are our two sweet cats, Clyde and Elliott. They spend lots of time playing and napping, wrestling and snuggling, and grooming themselves and one another. They especially love cuddles, belly rubs, sunbathing, and, most importantly, eating treats!