Meet the In-Laws ...

I don't know if you noticed, or if you have forgotten if you did notice ... but I went to Idaho this summer ...

Yeah, two family reunions, took photos, ate a bug, had my face run over by a mouse, got sick ...


... you know, the usual.


JUST IN CASE you forgot ...

Where, oh where did I leave off? And how did I get side-tracked? It was long enough ago for me (and that is, oh, about 4 hours) that I have forgotten, so I am awkwardly starting up my final countdown of our summer vacation. I have another complete day of photos ... and when I say complete day -

be afraid!

There most likely will be over 100 photos what with all this decision-making-issues I seem to be having on whether or not to put something on my blog or not. At the end, like it is right now ... deep into the night, I just throw caution to the wind - along with it go all consideration for y'all's patience and long suffering with me and my photo obsession - and dump EVERYTHING on.

Sorry. I have had worse problems ... this one does not keep me up at night ... hah! as I type this at (don't tell Gary) 2:38am ...

Some things just HAD TO BE PHOTOSHOPPED ...

So - today's title could have also read: "Sunday-and-Monday:-Since-we-just-swapped-families-Sunday-and-all-I-did-on-Monday-was-lay-around-the-cabin" but it wouldn't fit. Still ... pretty much that was it. All I took photos of was a family get together Sunday night and a sunset Monday night ...


AND STILL:


THIRTY SIX photos in this post! I think I have a problem and it seems to be getting worse. Hmmm, I will have to spend some time thinking about this. Feel free to let me know if it is driving you nuts. My thinking is the more photos there are, the less 'rambling' by me and that is ALWAYS A GOOD THING!

So ... Sunday after my sister has a melt-down at our cabin because she liked it and wanted to go back in time and come visit, relax in our hot tub, sleep in a spare bed ... After that Gary and I just lounged around. He mainly sleeping and me mainly playing with photos - thus I was getting sicker and he was not.

That evening we headed to the Glassman cabin, which became the Hurst Family Reunion central location, whether Craig and Jill liked it or not! The cabin is our sister in law Jill's family cabin and it is a beauty! Jill is married to Craig - Gary's older brother. They were SAINTS on this vacation. There is no other word for it.

They seemed to have all the meals planned out - Gary and I were clueless (or at least I was) but both Gary's sisters seemed much brighter than me and were big contributors. Had I felt better, I am sure I would have felt much more guilty about this than I did ... and I felt pretty guilty! But, by the time the Hurst side of the family showed up, I was pretty much toast having gone to Idaho ill, then having serious sleeping issues about small rodents chewing on bits of me if I nodded off, so I was a horrible person to be around. I feel rather guilty about it now, but at the time I was just trying to get by, but I can't imagine what my in-laws think of me - I was a butt.

Along with Craig and Jill, as I mentioned, both of Gary's sisters were up with parts of each of their families. There was his older sister Vicki and her husband Steve. And his older-yet-younger-than-Vicki sister Cherri and her husband Steve. That Gary has a younger brother named Steve is not a problem in the least ... Steve Hurst lives in Dallas and was not there, thus cutting down on the 'Which-Steve?' game. Actually we just shout out 'Allan', 'Hart' or 'Banana' and each knows which name he belongs to thus very little confusion ...

So - we get to the cabin for a wonderful meal - prepared and put together by 'everyone-but-me' (this became the theme for the Hurst part of the Reunion for me)

Who's floating the river? (come on say it: Everyone-but-me)


Who's making dinner?


Who's participating in the conversation?


Who is helping?


You get the idea of the game I am sure ... (Seriously ... I was a BUTT)

And while we were at the cabin, I did get some photos, so I thought I would introduce you to my in-laws! Unfortunately Gary's parents Rex and Lee (O'Leah) have both passed away and it is mainly because of that fact that we realize it is very difficult to have get togethers after the parents have passed away that Gary has pushed my family to get together every year. I grumble and complain, but I have wonderful memories, and making memories is what it is all about.

Here is Craig and both of their current dogs, I have forgotten their names (SHAME on me ...) and I am not waiting till morning to post when I can ask Gary so they shall remain nameless (unless I get ambitious and come edit this later ...):

And Jill:
And to make sure the dogs got 'equal time':
Seriously, these guys were wonderful. I wasn't paying much attention to what was going on around me when I actually showed up for something, but I did catch on that Craig had made a fishing pond with treats for my niece and nephews children. Many more little touches that didn't need to be done, but they did it and it made a big difference! I meant to send Jill a thank you note (with a big 'I'm sorry I was such a butt' addendum) but I am just now feeling decent and it seems too late to send one now ... what is the statute of limitations for sending Thank You notes?


Anybody know?


Seriously ...

I really like their cabin and took a bunch of photos of it while photographing people:

I really like this table set:
Mainly because it has a 'mini-me'!
I didn't take many photos of everyone. I feel uncomfortable taking photos of people - mainly because I ABHOR having my picture taken, thus assuming everyone is like me and feel bad snapping away ...
Here are Gary's lovely sisters ... and I do mean lovely! I meant to mention at the beginning of this post that my in-laws are wonderful! It has been very nice to marry into a family of such nice people!

Cherri is on the left and Vicki is on the right. Oh, and have I mentioned before that Gary is a genius? Yes? It is a family thing ... their father, Rex instilled a very strong sense of the importance of education in all of them - what a wonderful legacy! Craig is a doctor, Vicki is a Computer Science Professor and Cherri is a Math Teacher - there are no slouches in this family!

Gary speaking with three of Vicki and Steve's children:
OK, I have hit my dilemma ... what do I call a child of my niece or nephew? Seriously I don't know:
At the left table: Two Steve's, a Jill and a Vicki hiding behind her hubby Steve:
Brandon my nephew (Cherri and Steve's oldest son - Oh! Get this! All three of Gary's older siblings families - Craig, Vicki and Cherri - all have five children each and all in the ratio 1 and 4 - Craig: one daughter, Vicki: one son, Cherri: one son ... yeah - we broke the pattern, but they didn't kick us out of the family or anything ... OH! And Steve - the youngest (yeah Rex and Lee had five kids) has three daughters and ONE SON! I will let you know if the pattern continues ...).

Brandon is doctor doing his residency in something to do infants in the ICU (the NICU - pronounced 'nick you') and I really should know this, but I really don't know the details ... Cherri! One of my most faithful readers ... feel free as the proud mother you must be to let me know in the comments what his title, specialty, what ever it would be called is ...

I believe he is practicing that sweet, gentle, kind look a doctor needs to put an infant at ease in this photo:
A LOVELY shot here! Two of my nieces husbands (here AGAIN ... what would I call them ... other than my nieces husband?) posing provocatively (?) while their adorable young ones watch a movie. And yes, they were being wonderful - this was the babysitting room and they were on duty all evening:
Another pretty little thing! This is Trisha and Brandon's youngest, Halle, talking to Jill ... Trisha being one of Vicki's girls: (plus Lori - Vicki's eldest daughter and Brandon - Cherri's oldest son looking less like a serial killer and more bored ...)
And just another shot of the crowd there that night (more showed up the next day):
OK, here is where my post gets a little ... weird in that 'I-have-no-control-over-the-photos-I-dump-on-my-blog' thing.

I was playing around with some actions, textures and blending modes that are specific to portrait photography. Since I rarely take photos with humans in them, I sort of got carried away, then liked it all, and all of a sudden, all these photos were uploaded ...


... Ooooops! So fire me ....

This first batch is Trisha and Halle and I liked the photo so much I couldn't stop making new variations (I DO have SOME self control ... I only put in five ...):




This wonderful photo is of Vicki and two of her grandchildren - Lori's two: Brooke and Drew (Andrew) aren't they beautiful? (I do remember that Drew was telling me AT THIS EXACT moment that he did not want his photo taken ... mean, mean, me ...)


And, yes, Dr. Serial Killer is a NEW FATHER! Doesn't seem at all excited about it! SO MUCH FUN TO WATCH an excited new daddy! Here we were trying to get Bridger to show off his matching set of dimples, but sadly he didn't seem at all happy about the fact that I was taking his photo, all we got was drool:




WHEW!!! Almost done! I am sure you are so excited!

Sunday ended and Monday began and I stayed in the cabin in hopes of resting and feeling better while Gary went with the group down the river. Went back to the cabin that evening and I was so nausious that I couldn't talk (when I am going to throw up, for some reason a sure bet is to talk ... really SUCKS since you can't TELL SOMEONE YOU ARE GOING TO THROW UP ...) so I hid in another room and played with my phone apps. When counting activities that I attended, Gary says I can't count that one ...

On the drive home, the most beautiful sunset started. And had I posted this seperate - the title would have been

"Chasing Sunsets"

since that is EXACTLY what we did. We would drive to a place to get crap out of the foreground or someting nice in the foreground and by the time we got there, that part of the sunset was expiring, but, wait! Over there! Another part is lighting up! So off we would drive - only to be thwarted again ...

This went on for about 4 or 5 or 6 (?) mini races with the sinking sun and we finally gave up. I knew I was in trouble with the last stop, I jumped out of the car as fast as a nauseous person can and pointed the camera and took about 5 shots wondering what was wrong with my camera? It was showing black and white and had lost all color. Hmmm, crap, another camera death?

Um, no ... I looked up FOR THE FIRST TIME since exiting the car only to find that the sky was indeed, only black and white - the color was gone ... Must have been scary tired to think my camera was broken before I thought to look at the actual sky rather than the view screen on the back of my camera ...

But! Before all that, I took some shots with a bunch of crap in the foreground:
And you know me ... if I can get rid of it, I will:
Thus preparing the way for me to play:

And folks ....

THAT'S IT!





YOU MADE IT!




YOU SURVIVED!




I'm going to bed ...