A Sad Goodbye

Last month we said goodbye to my Grandma Ruth - my grandmother on my mom's side. At 93, she had lived a long full life, but it was still sad to say goodbye. On the bright side, she is probably up in heaven playing bridge with St. Peter and having a great time; plus her passing brought the Vosburgh clan together again. I'm just thankful that Molly did have a chance to meet her.

October 2011

We did have a great time getting together with all the family on my mom's side. Starting with Grandma Ruth as the matriarch, there are 4 daughters, 8 grandchildren, and 13 great-grandchildren, plus assorted in-laws. It was quite the gathering.

The main event was the service for Grandma Ruth at her retirement home on Saturday afternoon. Everyone was in attendance and we managed pictures of each tier of her descendents. Plus there was some playing, laughing and eating.

the daughters circa 1952

the daughters circa 2012 (plus cousin Nancy)

the grandchildren

the great grandchildren. 13 in one pic - woohoo!

the Sanford contingent
(Molly found all this family very tiring)

Eliza the food and beverage mooch

ring-around-the-rosie is more fun with 2nd cousins!

just hanging out with family

We then all gathered at my mom's in the evening. There was a champagne toast to Grandma (she adored champagne) and special appetizers: tiny shrimp and caviar. Dinner wasn't exactly Grandma related (BBQ and chicken nuggets) but it was still tasty. We finished up the evening with a rousing game of Pounce. If you haven't played the game with the Vosburgh clan, then you are missing a key experience in the world of card games!

that's a lot of champagne!

caviar and tiny shrimp

to Mother! to Grandma!

The next morning, there were pancakes for everyone still around. After all the goodbyes had been made, the weekend just kept on giving. Over the weekend, one of the great-grandchildren had a stomach bug that got passed on to just about everyone. Patient zero was sick on Friday night and by Wed, at least 20 of the 32 people in attendance were sick. And since we were all spread out from coast to coast, who knows how far the pestilence was spread! HA!

enjoying pancakes before the stomach bug struck...

It was sad to say goodbye, but it was wonderful to see so much family. I guess that's the way life works. Goodbye Grandma Ruth, we'll miss you!

Grandma Ruth and Grandpa Don in Whispering Pines, 1970s sometime