Cornish Family Reunion 2012

Matt and I met in May of 2010.  A few short weeks later I was flying to Ghana and he and the kids (which I hadn't met yet) were flying to Georgia for the Cornish Family reunion.  I remember him telling me about their reunions before he left and took pictures of everyone so I could begin to get acquainted with them.  The reunion was in John Tanner State Park and he didn't have any cell service there.  So he drove out a time or two to send me a text or call.  The first time I actually "met" the kids was on Skype while they were all in Georgia.  But that another story.

Two years later, at the next Cornish family reunion at John Tanner State Park, it was the Matt and Vicki Cornish family that were in charge :)

Matt volunteered for us to be in charge this year.  I was a little overwhelmed at the thought, not knowing his family very well, having never attended a reunion with them, the reunion being held in Georgia, and being 7+ months pregnant.  Matt's mom sent me the schedule for the previous reunion, which helped a lot.  Then I thought up a few themes we could use and had the kids pick one.  They settled on an "Army of Helaman" (which is what I hoped they would pick).

For several weeks before the reunion I worked on things and would run the plans by Matt and the kids.  It really was a happy distraction.  I was glad the kids were excited about what we were planning and had different ways for them to help.  The kids love going to Georgia, and I love that they love it.

We flew out on June 2 from the "new" Provo Airport.  It was awesome!  We drove to Spencer's house and then he took us to the airport.  The line was longer than I expected, but once people actually started getting checked in it moved really fast.  While we were waiting we made a bathroom stop.  They provided toothbrushes, toothpaste, and mouth wash.  And the lounge looked like a front room.  It was cute little airport.























They didn't start boarding until about 25 minutes before our scheduled take off, but we left on time :)  What a happy little traveling group we were.  I really like these people!

Amy and I got to be seat buddies.  She was a little nervous so we pulled out some activity books and kept ourselves quite busy with word searches and picture finds.  She is a delight. 

We had a few stops to make in Georgia before we headed to the cabin for the reunion.  One of those stops was the Dekalb Farmers Market.  This was one of the first things Matt told me about Atlanta.  It is one of his happy places.  It is a gigantic warehouse with foods from all over the world.  The produce section is crazy (that's what is pictured in the top right of the collage).  And the kids counted almost one hundred types of cheese.  At the far end, however, is the mother of all spice walls.  I'm not kidding, it is ridiculous.

We weren't supposed to take any pictures (seems weird to me) so I was sneaky and got the in the above collage inside the market, but I wish I had gotten the spice wall.  I got a picture off the internet of this little section of the spices & seasonings wall.  However, look at the following picture and then multiply it by... mmm, about ten, and you'll have an idea of what the full wall looks like.  Each of the little containers ranges in price from about fifty cents to maybe $1.50.  We walk up and down, pushing on the lids a little to get the smell of the season/spice.  It really is fun.  We walked out with several containers in hand.

Another stop we made was at Grandma and Grandpa Cornishes house.  They were renting out their house to a family while they lived in the Dominican Republic.  We had a family service project of cleaning up the yard and working on some house projects.  There is a such a good spirit when serving others.  

These are some mean bushes that live right outside the back entrance to the house.  The boys (Adam II, David, Matt, and Tyler) worked on trimming them back for quite a while.  

There may have been a moment or two of distraction... Emily doing a "Mulan" pose, Matt pushing Maria on the huge tree swing, and Amy doing some gymnastics.  

It was decided that there were enough Cornish cousins that were 12 or older that a trip to the Atlanta Temple to do baptisms for the dead would be a great tradition to start.  It was wonderful.  To be in the temple with family really is a unique experience. One I hope to have many, many times in my life.

We tried to get a family picture while we were there.  I'm not sure I would consider any of these a success, but attempts were made...

From the temple our family headed out to the cabin to start setting a few things up.  We were all excited about the reunion and it was a fun bonus family time that we were able to spend together.  So, here are some pictures and a few brief descriptions of our time at the John Tanner State Park.

The helped make several signs that went along with our "Army" theme.  Emily came up with this darling way using masking tape and black marker.  We had the welcome sign, one for the "Mess Hall" and for the "Barracks."  We loved how they turned out.  We divided everyone into an army and had colored camo headbands for them.  We also made dog tags for everyone and a booklet that we used during morning and evening devotionals.  So as each family arrived they had to check in and were given their book, their dog tags, and told what army they were a part of.  Then they were given a brief-briefing on the roles and responsibilities of the armies and where to find their assignments (in the booklet). 

I loved how lots of the kids (and Grandma) wore their bandannas and dog tags around during the reunion.  

Each army was assigned a meal to prepare.  Adam, an expert on pancakes, lead the blue army in breakfast.  Each army also made a flag that we hung in the main area.  It was a fun way for me to start to get to know different nieces and nephews.

Each family was also in charge of conducting a devotional.  We started the first night by introducing the story of the Army of Helaman to everyone.  We had gotten some butcher paper and attempted to draw out the main events of the story to have as a reference for the rest of the week.  Each morning and evening the family in charge would have a few verses of the story that they talked about and shared a message that they got from it.  At the first devotional our family introduced everyone else to a "J.O.T." (Just One Thing).  After the devotional we had a minute or two that everyone wrote a JOT in their booklet of something they learned from the devotional.

One of my favorite things was that after the evening devotionals we had a "Commanding Officers Quiz."  I'd sent out a survey to all the adults a few days before the reunion with questions like, "Do you bite your ice cream or strictly lick?" and "How did you get one of your scars?" and "What is something you wish you could still do?"  Each night we read a few of the questions and the responses people made.  Then we'd try to guess who said what.

We had some structured time that different people were assigned to prepare for such as crafts, service, games, and a talent show.  I don't have pictures from any of these events (I'm going to blame being pregnant and tired), but I think everyone enjoyed them.  Our family had a craft activity and decided to make our own chalk.  It took longer to dry in Georgia than the practice runs in Utah, but it turned out fun.  Adam and James were in charge of games.  They came up with several including a tug-o-war, racing while balancing a bean bag on a stick, and some water games.  Despite a minor/major accident during the tug-o-war, we had a great time.


One of my other favorite activities was the great marshmallow launching activity.  We used to do this at the end of the school year.  We paired the kids up with an adult or older cousin and gave them a bag of materials (tongue depressors, elastics, paper clips, milk lids, etc.) that they could use to make their marshmallow launcher.  I was queen of the glue gun, so I got to watch all the teams figure out their designs.  Some got frustrated, some tried several different things, some were done in a matter of a few minutes, others took half an hour.  Then we had three events: distance, target shooting, and tip the tower.  I can't remember how long the whole event took, but we sure enjoyed it.

There was also free time.  There are two lakes side by side (I think one may have been man-made).  The cabin is right next to one and is basically like a private lake for whoever has the cabin.  Awesome!  Then there is another one that has a beach.  Before we left for the reunion some calls were made and we were able to borrow several canoes.  It was such a great way to enjoy some time with some one or relax in the calm of the day.

Here are some pictures of the kids and cousins at the beach lake.  These pictures make me happy just looking at them.

It was a great trip and a wonderful family reunion.  I'm looking forward to the next one :)