cousins, offspring of three brothers

post #395
        Greetings from the mid coast of the state of Maine!  I am having a wonderful time with my two Wilkerson sisters, 5 cousins, some spouses and a few members of the next generation down.  This gathering happens bi-annually. I am not always able to go so I am glad to be here this year!  We're are not as numerous as some families I know in Appalachia, but we are loyal! Note: currently we mostly live in different states: Rhode Island, Connecticut (2), Maine, New Hampshire, New York, Massachusetts and, me in Kentucky.
          I love the laughter and the stories and, of course, our joint memories.
         The light for photo making here has not been fantastic, so combined with all the food preparation and consumption here at my Maine cousin's home and the many conversations catching up with each other, this is not a weekend primarily about photo making. Even so, I hope the few on this post today are interesting.  (I may well keep some others for my next post -- which will be in two weeks. After that I do plan to return to weekly posts on this blog.)
        
       

the view from the house

Stella retrieves the ball, from hillside to deck, again and again.

Saturday night and ready for lobsters!

My cousins Sarah and Claudia are both artists!

taking a break from dinner prep -- my sister Robin and her husband Steve

what my camera finds

     Two sides of the table, even though I protested that it wouldn't be great photography. However, it does give a flavor of the moment, so to speak:

Tomorrow I go back home, so I share this amazing moment from last week in my neighborhood in Kentucky:

end of August, part 2, a family reunion in Maine

post #206
         After almost two weeks, it is time to share more about beautiful Maine and the every other year reunion with my fun paternal cousins.  My father was the middle of three brothers, who had a total of ten offspring, eight of whom are still living. This was the generation who were all there this year, and four of us had six of our young adult kids who brought along with them 7 kids, ages 2 - 12.  We all call each other cousins, whether it be first, second, third or once or twice removed.  And this is why there will be a photo of the 24 lobsters on our Saturday night table.  (We did the actual eating outside or inside, wherever we could find a place to sit.  I was way too busy to take any photos!  Dangerous to leave plate or place unprotected....)
         Of note: we can gather in Maine because of the generosity of my cousin Sarah and her husband Bill who live there and have a house they rent out in the summer - except during the last week of August.  We can't all sleep under its roof but we sure can eat and visit up a storm and feel we are present for a special time in a beautiful place. 

first evening, the deck end of the house

the deck, the view, the bay

Bill at work....

at the motel, made up of several buildings, located near the water

Between the motel and the house was a bridge that rotates to make way for high boats..  I managed to wait in line twice.  There is an osprey nest on one end of the top of the bridge though it doesn't show up in the photos.

Three views around and in the house

the next door house and their ramp

Two photos of cousins at play:

Dinner - keep it simple, keep it delicious, keep it beautiful:

 Sunday morning, three views from the motel, starting at 6:45 a.m.:

same elements but from a different angle and an hour later

I didn't take all that many photos over the weekend, but there were some I couldn't resist.  A shout out to all those cousins of all generations. It was great to be all together, and I even enjoyed the long day and a half car rides to and from home to be there.  However, one reason, as always, for sharing these photos is for all the visitors to this blog, from Kentucky and from around the world, who may never have the chance to go to Maine.