Have you ever had a plan go awry? When that happens, you learn to make the best of what you have. As the quote by Annette Funicello says, “Life does not have to be perfect to be wonderful.” A lesson we all can learn. The year 2022 has been special for my husband and for me - a pair of ‘decade’ birthdays as well as our 25th wedding anniversary. We rented a house in Lakeside, Ohio to celebrate and invited our five children, their spouses, and our eleven grandchildren to join us for a week of fun and sun this summer. Since our invitation, two new grandchildren have been added to the family, making us a group of 23, with grandchildren ages 3 days to 13 years old. We were reminded of how busy life can be with work, children, babies’ schedules, scout camp, band camp, and musical theater. A couple of families needed to arrive late, others needed to leave early. We were happy with whatever they could give us as we set out to make the best of our 48 hours together.
Everyone tested for Covid the day before we were together and all tested negative. Sunday morning found everyone together for family photos and a Hotel Lakeside brunch. Rain was our first glitch that morning as it moved our photos from the lake to indoors. We found that nothing could diminish our time together. Cousins enjoyed playing together, siblings shared parenting duties, and we celebrated for the entire day. Tears of joy came to my eyes as I took it all in. Everyone was in one room, laughing, playing, eating, catching up, and having fun. The rain came back that afternoon during a round of mini-golf and our five year old grandson played through it. Nothing was going to stop him.
One of the dads had to leave us Monday morning for work. He had been fine all weekend but had a positive Covid test when he retested at home. To be safe we tested several others and found only one more positive result. Two families left for home to keep everyone safe and we became a group of thirteen, determined to continue on. Wooden boat rides, splash pads, swimming, ice cream cones, games, cousin fun, and story sharing all continued until the remaining families left for home as originally planned. My husband and I had two days alone when they were all gone. We enjoyed attending seminars, eating out, going to a talent show, and soaking in all Lakeside has to offer. The quarantine period is over now for us all and we are so glad Covid touched only one family.
It wasn’t the week we had imagined, but it was still fabulous. Everyone came and went as their family needed, and we were all able to be together for an entire day. Our two newborns will hear stories of sharing the Maxwell House, how their cousins first met them, how the pandemic sent a few home early, and how we made the most of the time we had. The photos will be around to enjoy forever along with our memories. It may have been the first time we were all together, but it won’t be the last.
Life is wonderful, even when it’s not perfect. Find what makes today wonderful for you and cherish it. It’s really all we have.
