Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Cleveland, OH

After visiting Laura's extended family in Louisville, we hopped in the CRaVe to drive a "short" (at least by our standards) 5 hours to visit my extended family in Cleveland. Like Laura, I have many great memories going to Nana and Papa's house every summer in Cleveland growing up.

For this trip, only five of the eight families were in town for a total of 25 people (out of the 45+). Also different was the relative ages of everyone. Instead of a gaggle of toddlers, groups of teens roamed the "big house" on Hilliard. Laura did a fantastic job memorizing everyone's names and getting to know everyone, which is a big challenge given the large number of people.

The highlight of the stop in Cleveland was a surprise shower planned by Nana for Laura on the back-porch. After coming back from a quick errand, we were happily greeted by a torch-lit patio, delicious food, and a table of presents. The shower entertainment included a fashion show led by Ashley and Stephanie of past Louth family bridesmaid dresses, and a special "guide to the family" book given by Alex. The book had a page on each member of the family with key information. Really good idea and very funny!

Besides the shower, we had a great time hanging out in the pool, jumping through hula-hoops (literally), going to a baseball game with my dad, and spending a day with Grandma Martin.

Special thanks to everyone who made our Cleveland trip so special, especially Nana and Papa!

Grandma Martin
Getting it out of our systems early--Don't expect to see this at the wedding!
Thanks Alex!


The whole gang!

The lovely fashion show ladies :)

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