Birthday Blessings

We got a call at 9 am from Aunt Nancy with an invitation to an impromptu celebration of Mom's birthday at 2 pm.We hustled up the schoolwork and looked forward to the party!

Aunt Cecilia's crew was also able to make it, in fact wouldn't miss it, and that made 20 grand-children ready to party with their Grandma!

Cousin Brian drove by and he and Kat joined us, making that 22 grand-children.

There were costumes.

and lots of outdoor play.

I may be mistaken but I didn't see that anyone of us had brought a present for Mom.WE KNEW that she would be so happy to spend time with us that " our presence" was the gift.We knew that that was the best gift of all. If she wanted something, she could easily go buy it. What she really loves is people, especially her own family, so that is what we brought her and not out of a sense of obligation, either. We LOVE to spend time with Mom. If we all weren't homeschooling a hundred kids, we'd spend even more time with her!

That being said, imagine how surprised we all were when Mom pulled out a gift for each of her grandchildren as a favor for coming to the party!!!!I was amazed... How do you think of this stuff, Mom???  Grace, I'm pretty sure!

We were all able to stay for dinner and whipped up spaghetti with meat sauce, salad, fresh garlic bread and chicken nuggets for everybody. It is so funny how food kind of multiplies so that there is always enough to feed a crowd.

Aunt Nancy's house has three dining tables set up. We used them all!

It was a beautiful day together celebrating Mom's birthday. If it wasn't for her life, almost none of us in these pictures would exist. With all of our love, we wish her health and every happiness in the coming year.