Changing Traditions

I was supposed to go into work tonight at 11pm, but they gave me a "no pay". Basically, that's when they call at about 10pm saying "we don't need you...do you want to take the night off (not eligible for pay)?" It's always fun to receive a no pay : )

So...I thought now would be a good time to talk about our trip to Ellensburg! Greg gave you his version in the last blog (it made me laugh out loud..but I can guarantee I was not laughing at the time it happened!)

Ever since my family moved to Washington in '99, we meet at my grandparent's farm in Ellensburg for the annual parade/fair/rodeo over Labor Day weekend. We've done it all over the past 9 years: played horsehoes, badmitton, golf, picked corn, fished, camped and/or chased cows in my Grandpa's pasture. Memories have been made every year. The first year I got a puppy, the third year we slept out in a 3 room tent (at which time I was horrified at my mom told my then-boyfriend Greg how I was conceived...), the list goes on and on. But this year...everything was different.

I'm the type of person that thrives on tradition and memories, and it hurts to see such an important event in my life, one that I look forward to for months, change so drastically. I knew it was coming eventually. Every year my Grandpa hosts the tractor portion of the parade in his front yard. Saturday at 6 am dozens of men with their polished John Deeres ride into the yard in formation to head into town for the morning parade. The largest pulls a giant covered wagon big enough to hold 50 people. It started out that the entire family, including my great-aunts and uncles, cousins, and random people I was somehow related to, used to ride in the covered wagon and wave to the crowds. Over the past 5 years, the number has decreased signficantly. This year only 6 members of my extended family rode in the parade, even the number of tractors decreased! This was a sign of a much bigger problem to our family traditions.

This year I realized that Labor Day weekend won't ever be the same. Each family has changed; there are new marriages, pregnancies, children, relocations, career changes, homes, deaths, and separations. It hit me hard this year that everything has changed. At first I was dissapointed, no one showed up for the annual family reunion except us! There were no family games of horsehoes, badmitton, or golf. My heart was broken.

As we were leaving town, God spoke through my husband to heal my heart. I must not look back and regret what won't be in the future, I must look back with a thankful heart for the memories and bonds made in the past. I must look towards the growth in each family's life, and pray for my family for the changes each one is enduring. I must look forward to the blessings God has for my own family with Greg and rejoice in the changes that have come and will come in the future. Nothing is meant to be stagnant in my life. God is ever changing this renewed heart within me. I am constantly learning and constantly growing in every way...and so is our family. This weekend the Lord blessed Greg and I with a restful time to connect with our daughter and each other. With a large crowd, we would have been unable to spend the quality time as a family. I would not have been able to spend two wonderful, and well-needed, date nights with my husband. So I am truly thankful for the changes that we witnessed this year. I believe God has prepared me for a new and difficult lesson to learn. Life is going to continue to change, our family reunion will likely never be the same as before. Another lesson of adulthood I guess, and now that Greg and I have a child, the lesson hit hard! But we are rejoicing in it!

To lighten the mood, I should tell you that we had a great time introducing Josie to horses, pigs, and golf carts. She had a blast with every thing! She had her first date at the fair; her daddy won her a pink doggy from the carnival games.