Six years ago Zach and I had been "official" for just over a month when he asked me if I wanted to come along on a family reunion to Bear Lake and meet all of his mom's extended family. It seemed a little soon, but after consulting with all my wise, married, male coworkers who had nothing more interesting to discuss we collectively decided to risk it. And I'm so glad I did.
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| Zach and Rissa circa 2009 |
Now, this last week, we got to relive the magic married, with a two year-old, and seven months pregnant. Slightly less romantic, but still a blast. We armed ourselves with an enormous tent mahal and an air mattress and when we arrived and Eli went straight for the sand. Aside from a few brief forays into the lake and a break or two for crafts, he never left it.
While Eli moved sand from spot to spot to tent, Zach took his job as genius chess master swimsuit model very seriously.
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| The chess master lost this game to his Grandpa, who is slightly more masterful. |
Zach also MCed a very impressive talent show. Who knew that the Haights had so much collective skills? Well, of course we all did.
Meanwhile, I let other people take care of my child, ate as much raspberry shake (famous or otherwise) as humanly possible, and fulfilled my role as Eli's selfie buddy.
Occasionally he didn't need me. Kid's got a thing for selfies lately.
All in all we had a wonderful time. Eli surprised us by sleeping through the nights, I slept more than I had anticipated, and despite his nemeses the mosquitoes, Zach slept like a rock. Everyone was happy. I am so grateful for this wonderful family that welcomed me into their dance of joy six years ago when I was just a random girlfriend. The Haights are great!
The Judkins are too!
