October 12, 2004

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  These are pictures from our family dinner Friday evening. The top picture is Dan, me, Dave’s wife Salli, and Dan’s brother Dave. The bottom picture is our daughter-in-law Jess, our son Andy, their son Jake, Dave’s son Aaron, his wife Jo, and their new baby Bode, our son-in-law Matt, our daughter Betsy, and their children Madison and Ryan, who did not seem to be in the mood to be photographed.

  We were supposed to meet Dave and Salli at the airport when their plane arrived at about 4:30 on Friday. Aaron and Jo were supposed to be there, too. We had a long drive and could not leave before 3:30 because we had to wait until school was out. To get to the airport, we have to take I-494, which at that time of day is basically a large parking lot, so I knew that we might be late. I had Dan call Aaron on Thursday evening and give him my cell phone number so he could call us if we were delayed and find out where we were and how long we thought it might be before we arrived. Aaron also gave Dan a phone number, which Dan wrote down, but Dan did not tell me that it was a cell phone number, so I did not bring it along. We did get delayed, arriving about 5:30, and I kept waiting for my phone to ring and Aaron to ask where we were. Upon our arrival, we learned that Aaron had tried to call, but he had recorded my phone number incorrectly so he met some lovely new people when he made his wrong number call. So much for planning!

  We all proceeded to Betsy’s for dinner, a lovely visit, and, of course, the mandatory picture session. We had not seen Dave’s family for several years, so we had a lot to talk about, plus there was new baby Bode to cuddle and coo over.

  We had a variation of the classic “children’s table” at dinner. We had an “old folks’” table! Dave, Salli, Dan and I sat at a small, separate table to relieve congestion at the big table. That gave us a chance to visit, something we don’t often get, and it gave the cousins a chance to get to know each other better. There was a lot of chatter and the food disappeared, so I would pronounce dinner a success.

  After dinner, or really towards the end of dinner, the men drifted to the TV to watch the Twins game. When we finished eating, the women moved into the living room. Why do parties always end up that way? Men in one room and women in another? The kids kind of traveled back and forth between the two groups.

  At the end of the evening, we took pictures. That’s a ritual nobody really likes, but it’s important so that there is a tangible memory of the occasion. Then Dave, Salli, Aaron, Jo and Bode headed to Aaron’s home in Rochester to spend a few days with them before flying home to Salt Lake today. Many times during the evening, they extended invitations to all of us to come and visit them in Salt Lake. I think we need to find a time to do that. It’s been about 6 years since the last time we saw them. I think we need to make sure so much time does not elapse before we see them next.

  • 3:23 pm
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