Maureen chose to celebrate her 50th birthday with all her siblings in Lake Havasu. Thanks to Karen and Dale for hosting this big group and planning our special time there. Five of us from the great Pacific Northwest arrived at the Phoenix airport and were greeted by Maureen and adopted sister, Christel. We piled into a rented van and breathed a sigh of relief when all the luggage fit! We Kop kids feel blessed and grateful that we enjoy spending time together, telling stories, eating "Bertha" food, walking and hiking a little, working on art projects, and mostly sitting around talking to each other. 
Karen greeted us with home-grown fresh squeezed grapefruit juice and a picture mug for each of us
And we could take our pick of the lovely rocks she paints.
It actually got really warm, 95 degrees, so we arranged to do our walking and hiking in the morning.
We first walked to the wildlife reserve near Karen and Dale's home.
We also took a little tour of Havasu and had our picture taken in front of the famous London Bridge
All these pictures were taken during our hike and boulder scrambling in Sara's Crack!
I've done this hike several times, but it was pure joy to share it with Connie, Allan, and Larry, who experienced the rope and ladder for the first time!
We all made it through!! Thumbs up.
Success for us, but we actually had it easy!
Dale and Christel hiked up to the picnic table and met us in the canyon
After hiking we met Don, Marilyn, and Joan for lunch and beer samples!!
Friday night we celebrated Maureen's birthday with wine from the Illinois cousins! Larry brought the bottle in his suitcase and had duct tape wrapped around the corks.
We laughed out loud when Don told the stories of being on PHS track team, a freshman star!
Most of us had no idea he played football and our parents probably never attended a game. Those were the days.....
Conversation got a little more serious when Connie told her stories of prayer and faith. We never tire of hearing the stories, laughing, and even crying a bit. We also toasted Maureen and "sang" of her virtues and other qualities that make her our favorite baby sister and prayed this blessing in her honor.
Gracious God, today we celebrate that Maureen
Has been Your gift to all of us,
A gift that grows more precious in our hearts
With each passing day.
Bless her on her birthday with
Blessings of good health, of laughter and happiness
Blessings of wonder and awe, amazement and playfulness
On this birthday may her heart overflow
With love for You, for us, and all of your creation.
On Saturday our Reed cousins, who live in Earp, California, during the winter, joined us for dinner.
Judy, Peggy, Jim, and Carol Reed shared more stories and hopes for our retired futures!
Sunday we did a little rock painting and added glass pieces to Karen's mosaic Circle of Life.
I took this picture to determine which one had the darker skin!
Some of us took a little walk to watch the sunset on Lake Havasu.
We all went to Mass and took this picture before Don and Allan left to drive back to California.
Happy faces, warm hearts!
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