It was a three-phase birthday party/sibling gathering.
Friday night, some family members at Sweet Lou's for Friday-night dinner.
Saturday night, family and friends at Jalapenos.
Sunday, family at National Wildlife Refuge picnic area northwest of Bonners Ferry.
The last day of our celebrating brother Kevin's 80th birthday was the worst, weatherwise, but that was okay.
We like to think of ourselves as ". . . the tough get going."
So, we toughed out a little rain and a definite sense of cold.
If folks look miserable in the photos below, they were.
Nonetheless, they were also appreciating every moment.
We had planned to go to our usual picnic spot on the Fish and Game property at Boundary Creek where dogs do not have to be on leash, but the obvious outdoor misery led us to changing our plans a bit.
The wildlife refuge picnic area, which is somewhat protects from the elements, served its purpose.
Dogs and their peeps had a good time, shivering, bundling up, begging and visiting.
I told some of my siblings after we arrived home that yesterday's event took me back to the nostalgia of our adventurous, occasionally impish childhood and of our family Sunday drives.
We could all fit into one car then because the family numbers varied through that era.
With a 20-year span from youngest to oldest, family numbers for any event were fluid at times.
Yesterday, instead of a box of Bacon thins, conservatively doled out by our mother, we had all kinds of junk food and deli sandwiches for nibbling.
Since the two chefs in the family were gone (Willie and Debbie to the coast and Bill to a conference in Moscow), we assembled our picnic menu at Super 1 in Bonners Ferry.
Today the travelers will head home to Washington, Oregon and Montana, and life will get back to a somewhat normal, but our thoughts will be flooded with treasured memories.
It was a wonderful weekend.
Happy Monday.
Enjoy the photos and the video which reflects a sense of our emotions toward those storied younger years while growing up our North Boyer farm.
Laura, Mary, Mike, Laurie, Joyce, Barbara, Kevin, Jim, Marianne and Cindy.
Photo bombers: Remi, Callie and Ozzie.
Below: six Brown/Tibbs siblings: Laurie, Barbara and Jim Tibbs; Mike, Kevin and Marianne Brown Love.
Jim was literally thinking about how it was 70 degrees where he lives in Oregon.
💙💚💛💜💔💙💚💛💜💔
