Hatfield Reunion 2010

Me in front of the John Deere tractor used for the hay ride.

Lisa and me

Me with my long lost "sister" Carey Moore! LOL!

Summer wouldn't be summer without family reunions. This summer, I once again had the honor of attending the Hatfield reunion with my wife Lisa. It was even better this year because we were able to take my mother-in-law Janet with us. Janet was originally a Hatfield, if you were wondering how a Fugate got invited into the clan! LOL!

On a hot and sunny Friday morning, we all loaded into the van. The good people at Nim Henson Geriatric Center even packed up all of Janet's medicines that she would need for the weekend. They are just really good people!

Off we headed to Yatesville Lake in Louisa. The Hatfields always rent out all of the cabins at Creekside Cabins and RV Park. It is a great location to relax and unwind. There are 8 cabins that get rented out. Plus there is lots of room for the rest of the family who like to bring their RVs.

When we arrived, we saw the familiar "big tent" that they rent for the weekend. This year, the family also rented several of the inflatable rides that are very popular right now. As we got closer, I saw that they had rented an obstacle course, water slide, and one where two people try to knock each other off a pedestal with large padded javelins. These were mainly meant for the kids...but the adults enjoyed them also. This was especially true late at night when jousting contests took place! LOL!

We quickly unloaded the van and made ourselves at home. We hadn't seen most of these people in a year, since last year's reunion. However, thanks to Facebook, we have been keeping up with each other a little better. What did we ever do before Facebook? It is truly a wonderful thing...especially if you use it to keep in contact with people who live in other counties or states.

The first night, we had the annual auction which helps to raise money for the reunion. Yours truly was once again chosen to be auctioneer. I am not complaining though. I love it.

We had a great dinner of traditional summer foods....hamburgers, hotdogs, chips, etc. Then, everyone piled onto stacks of hay pulled by an antique John Deere tractor for a hayride around the community. I wonder what people thought when they saw all of us riding through their neighborhood. Of course, I had on my lovely straw hat that my "long long sister" Carey Moore had given me. We are so much alike! We decided over the span of the weekend that we are surely brother and sister who got accidentally separated at birth...LOL!

After dinner, we held the Hatfield Summer Olympics. Everyone was broken into teams and competed in events such as a three-legged race, water balloon toss, and relay race. It was a great time, and everyone seemed to have a lot of fun competing in the events. There were events for both adults and children.

The next day was hillbilly day. I wore my bib overalls just for the occasion. It was a great day and everyone enjoyed talking and catching up with each other. Lisa and I were so proud of Janet because she was able to walk up and down the steps of our cabin by herself. She did a great job! Everyone loved having Janet at the reunion this year.

Lisa spent a lot of the day cooking for big dinner that night. She made cornbread salad, overnight salad, oatmeal raisin cake, and a black walnut cake. She also made a homemade butter cream icing for both of the cakes. They were so good!

Speaking of food, everyone at the Hatfield reunion loved to eat. We had tons of food...smoked meats, barbeque, salads, green beans, breads, casseroles, and loads of other foods too numerous to list here. The tables were groaning with food...for a little while at least. Then...we were all groaning because we had eaten too much!

That night, the evening's entertainment was the Hatfield Family Hee Haw. Carey was the ringleader of the show, appearing as Minnie Pearl...complete with hat and tag! She had recruited several of us to be in the show, including me! I was....get ready for it...none other than Dolly Parton! It was a hoot! I wasn't too sure if I was going to get into that dress at first or not! It was a little tight...probably from all that delicious food from earlier in the day. They really stuffed me "up top" also, if you know what I mean. It was all in good fun though.

Other family members dressed up as various characters such as Ike and Tina Turner, Brittany Spears, Madonna, Elvis, Sonny and Cher, and Hank Williams Jr. It was a good show. We all laughed so hard. I think that it is wonderful to be able to let your hair down every once in a while. In my case, it was a long blonde wig! LOL!

Everyone sat around afterwards just talking and enjoying each other's company. I felt so good just to be a part of this family's reunion. As an only child, I didn't have a large family. Growing up, we didn't really get together a lot with other family members either. It felt really good to be a part of this great group of people. Who knew when I was marrying a wonderful woman like Lisa that I was getting a bonus as well?

The next day, we loaded up the van. It was a bittersweet time because we had had such a great time and now it was time to head back to the "real" world. After lots of hugs, handshakes, and slaps on the back, we started back home. I really had a great time at this year's Hatfield reunion. Lisa and Janet said that they did as well. Now....the countdown to next year begins.

Until next week...class dismissed.