Lee Family Reunion

August 10th and 11th were important dates for the Bennie and Carol Lee family. With 8 grown children, busy as ever each growing their own families and many in different states, it is a rarity to have every member together (what did we count? 7 years and 5 grandkids since the last gathering?). We were excited for the reunion!! Lori and Mom had put in the hours planning the event and picked a great place in the mountains above Cedar City where we all shared a group of 4 cabins. When our little clan (plus Brett and Ashley) arrived Friday night, we found everyone enjoying a game of Old Sal in the field near the cabins using a great set of Dollar store hockey sticks/balls. We spent the night playing outside, eating good food, chatting and playing card games as much into the night as the mother of a sleepy but wide-awake 2 year old would allow (ahem :)). With less then a few hours of sleep, the die-hard fishermen in the family awoke before dawn to greet the fish in a near-by lake. The mighty fishermen arrived back by breakfast and we all enjoyed the morning taking walks around the Duck Creek village shops and fantasizing about Dad & Mom's new cabin (being built this coming spring in Hideaway Valley). After lunch, we headed up to the Mammoth Caves - a series of lava tubes not far from our cabins - definitely a favorite memory! I'm grinning now just re-envisioning our crew making our way through a pitch black tunnel, over large boulders with a 1:4 flashlight ratio. Did I mention that the Lee family always manages to have epic adventures whenever together? :) It was a great time. Later in the afternoon, we headed back to get cleaned up for family pictures (if nothing else happened on the trip, with a possible 7 year gap, this needed to!). If you are wondering why everyone in the picture has watery eyes, well, let's just say that a certain 2 year old has perfect timing when it comes to filling his diaper. Later that evening, we had some delicious (and effective :() Chili, played a fun and memorable game of Family Feud (thanks Mom) and enjoyed cheese/chocolate fondue late into the evening. What a party! I'm all for yearly gatherings of this kind!


More pics to come....