A Golden Weekend

What better way to celebrate fifty years of marriage than with those who are nearest and dearest?

I remember when fiftieth anniversaries were called 'golden weddings'.

My parent's fiftieth celebration was like a wedding...

complete with formal invitations, a catered event with a lengthy program.

It was lovely and memorable...

but I so prefer our 'golden getaway' with our children and grandchildren.

Since our anniversary falls on a long weekend...

the cabins at Tigh Na Mara in Parksville were booked far in advance.

They were in fact booked before pandemic restrictions were in place...

in February of 2020. 

Whether our planned celebration would be happening at all was still in question a few months ago.

But as of last month...

we were free to travel outside our region and make the trek to Vancouver Island.

As it turned out...

we were not the only ones wanting to get on the ferry for the long weekend.

Despite having reservations for all four families...

it was not an easy feat to actually get to the ferry with the traffic backed up on the causeway to Tsawwassen ferry terminal.

We made it!

Once on board...

we took over one corner of the dining room.

Seeing whales as we ate was a bonus!

Thankfully our log cabins were all next to each other...

making meal time parties easy.

What a surprise to have deliveries to the front door of our cottage....

flowers and fruit.

The flowers were the perfect touch on the table...

and the fruit basket was enjoyed by all!

They all found their favorite place...

...to hang out.

That's what hammocks are for, right?

Dylan...

...and Micah.

They always find the skate park!

Micah took Grandpa on a crabbing expedition.

Beach time.

Cousin time...

And storytime too!

Who knew Micah was a storyteller?

Uncle Jeremy was a good listener.

We happened to have cabins right next to the tennis/basketball courts...

a bonus for all.

There were some serious ping-pong tournaments as well.

I think Ryder actually met his match!  LOL

I'll just add a few pic's from our photo session at the beach.

With the original three. :)

Kris & Lina.

Dylan, Ranen, Micah, Holly & Brynja (l-r)

Jeremy & Broni

Spencer, Ryder and Emme

Tim & Heidi

Lucy and Maggie

I am so thankful that we could all spend the weekend together at this beautiful spot.

Awhile back, Ranen tried on my wedding gown...

and it fit perfectly.

The plan was for her to model it at our anniversary celebration.

I brought the gown along...

and then we totally forgot about it.

But for the record...

...here is a picture of my granddaughter wearing my gown.

And of course...

a cake!

Fifty years went by so quickly.

We have no idea what tomorrow may hold...

but are thankful for God's faithfulness 

and look forward to the journey ahead.

(This is actually 'part 2' of my July post....

in case you missed my monthly re-cap.)