Aune Family Reunion 2018

My paternal grandmother's maiden name was Aune. She and two of her sisters all had large families, meaning my dad had a lot of cousins on the Aune side, and I have a lot of second cousins, and my kids have a lot of third cousins!

Every since 1997, our Aune family members have been gathering for reunions every four years or so, each time a different branch of the family taking a turn to serve as hosts. The Wilsons (my grandma's sister Bea and her family) hosted the first one, followed by the Clarks (my grandma's sister June and her family), and then by the Mobergs (my grandma Olga and her family).

Up until this weekend, each family except the Mobergs had hosted two reunions--so it was our turn to step up and get the Aunes together again. And we chose to do it in Medora, ND! It doesn't have a particular meaning to our family--it's just a great tourism spot where we could do fun activities together in addition to visiting and eating.

Everybody got a bright green T-shirt to wear so that we could be identified as a group while out and about in Medora all weekend. On the front is this image of Yggdrasil, the tree of life from Norse mythology (the Aunes are a very Scandinavian bunch). At the trunk are my great-grandparents; and in the branches are my grandma and her siblings.

The Aunes are not particularly ranch-y/cowboy-ish people, although there are plenty of farmers and ranchers among us. This just seemed like a fitting image for the back of the T-shirts, considering the distinctive Old West flavor of Medora.

And here are a bunch of Aunes (in the bright green T-shirts) seated in the Burning Hills Amphitheater Friday evening, awaiting the start of the Medora Musical, our first reunion activity of the weekend. Just over 100 Aunes were able to attend the reunion festivities.

It just so happens that "family reunion" was a theme of this year's Medora Musical! How fitting.

Most of our activities yesterday and today were held in the Medora Community Center. Saturday started with early-morning golf at the acclaimed Bully Pulpit Golf Course before meeting at the community center for dinner at noon. In the afternoon, we had a scavenger hunt around town, requiring us to look for objects that had been hidden at various spots outdoors as well as for items on the shelves and walls of various shops around town. In the evening, we had supper at the community center followed by entertainment and games.

None of my grandma's generation are alive anymore. But here are "the Aune cousins": my dad (seated) and the other members of his generation who were able to attend. Three of my grandma Olga's children are still living: Alden (in the purple shirt), Rose (in the white sweater), and Arlo (my dad). Four of my great-aunt June's children attended: JoAnn (seated), Vickie (behind JoAnn), John (in the yellow hat), and Jay (next to John). None of my great-aunt Bea's children were able to attend this year.

Saturday night's entertainment included some games, such as competitive Nordic cross-country skiing (on felt-bottomed skis from one side of the community center to the other). Here are Hillary, Suzanna, and Abigail warming up to beat the team of Clarks getting ready behind them.

This morning some Aunes returned to the golf course before we all gathered for brunch in the community center and then said our goodbyes. And now we look forward to the next reunion!

Silver Anniversary

We're spending the night at my dad and stepmom's in Tioga.  We came up today to be able to attend a party this evening for my cousin and her husband, who are celebrating their 25th anniversary.  Wanna see some photos?

Wet and Windy in Williston

No Scandinavian Saturday supper tonight. The girls had a swim meet in Williston today, so we ate there instead. We left around 6:45 A.M. and drove through some drifting snow on the roads until Watford City, but we made our way to the E. J. Hagen Aquatic Center in Williston without incident. My aunt Lucille, who lives in Williston, spent the day with us at the meet, cheering on the girls and catching up on family news with us. My dad and stepmom drove to Williston for the meet, too. My dad's cousin Jay and his wife were there from Minot with their son Daniel, who was competing, too--and Jay cheered on our girls whenever they were racing (and, um, he's a very audible cheerer). So our daughters had lots of fans in the stands while they swam!

That's Abigail sitting on her grandma's lap. Beverly is sitting beside Dad, who is beside me, and Lucille is to my left.

It's not so easy to get good photos of the girls at a swim meet. We end up with a collection of photographs of diving blocks with blurs on them as a daughter leaps for the water, or of splashing water as she heads down the lanes. So, in lieu of pics of our children, here's a cool photo that Suzanna took of the lanes between events. (Orange and black are Williston's school colors.)

After the meet, we went with Lucille, Dad, and Beverly to Gramma Sharon's Family Restaurant for a mid-afternoon meal courtesy of Lucille. It was terrific to spend so much time with her today. She certainly didn't have to sit in the heat of the pool facility on the hard concrete bleachers with no back support for four hours to watch her great-nieces swim, but she did. She also didn't have to buy us supper, but she did that, too! And it was good to visit with her throughout the day. It had been a long time! We got some visiting in with Dad and Beverly, too. They brought early Valentine's Day gifts for the girls (red and white stuffed animals with long, floppy, super-soft ears), and we gave Beverly an early birthday gift (the real day is Tuesday).

The wind was bitterly cold in Williston today, and the weather was none too pleasant to drive through on the way home. The darker it got outside, the windier it got, and the drifting snow swirled in mesmerizing patterns across the road, making it difficult for me to focus. From Grassy Butte to Belfield, snow drifts were forming on the road, too, giving us a few jolts as we plowed through them in order to stay in our lane when meeting oncoming traffic. But we're home now, safe and sound. Time to hang up the wet swimming suits and get into comfy pajamas!

Aune Family Reunion 2009: Day 3

(Recall Day 1 and Day 2 of this reunion?)

After another fantastic breakfast at the hotel, Susan and I took the girls to church. Those who were interested had been invited to attend Shelley and Kevin's church (reminder: Shelley's mom is Bea, one of the Aune siblings whose descendants gather for these reunions), which happens to be just a couple miles straight east of the hotel. We gave a ride to my uncle and stepaunt, Shine and Janet, while other relatives followed us in their own vehicles.

Easter Lutheran Church has two sites just a few blocks apart: Easter on the Hill (traditional services) and Easter by the Lake (contemporary services). Shelley and Kevin attend the one overlooking Thomas Lake. When the weather is nice, they set up open-sided tents on the lawn and hold the service outdoors. It was a gorgeous morning, so we all grabbed folding chairs, set them up on the lawn, and enjoyed a service that started with lots of music. Then the pastor wandered amongst the congregants, asking them to share aloud their "joys and concerns" (e.g., ill people for whom to pray or happy announcements for which to give thanks) (Shelley shared her gratefulness for all the family members able to attend the Aune reunion!), which one of the musicians kept track of on a piece of paper. Then she handed the pastor the list of joys and concerns, and he led prayers based upon what people had just shared! That was pretty awesome. Good music + good message (in the sermon) + energetic congregation + beautiful setting = invigorating church service!

Some relatives had already left to return to their own homes by the time we got back to the hotel after church, but we gathered with those who were still around to have coffee and cookies and say goodbyes. Then my sisters joined Susan, the girls, and me for dinner (at the Dairy Queen next to the hotel) before taking the hotel shuttle to the Mall of America in nearby Bloomington. Although we've been there several times before, that place seems to have changed each time we return with new restaurants and stores replacing some of the old ones and now with a new indoor amusement park (Nickelodeon Universe, which replaced Camp Snoopy). We had only a few items on our shopping agenda, so other than a few stops for specific items, we mostly just wandered around and took in the size and scope of the mall (the largest mall in the U.S.). Here are some highlights:

Susan snapped this pic of our daughters with me and my sisters, Cathy (next to me) and Sandy.

Sandy took this picture so that Susan could get into the photograph. Unfortunately, her face is obscured by Abigail's.

Abigail, Suzanna, and Hillary strike a pose in front of SpongeBob SquarePants in the middle of Nickelodeon Universe. Susan and I had kind of planned to let the girls ride a few of the roller coasters in the amusement park, but the afternoon passed by before we got to that, and soon it was time to board the shuttle for the return trip to the hotel. But there were absolutely no complaints from the girls; none of them whined about not riding the rides or even asked about the possibility. They just enjoyed wandering through the amusement park and peeking down on the rides as we saw them from each floor of the mall.

Maybe the girls didn't beg to ride the rides at Nickelodeon Universe because they were so pleased with their new dolls, purchased at Friends 2B Made. It is a build-your-own doll store like Build-a-Bear Workshop (recall their having created their own stuffed teddy bears last summer?). In fact, the clothes and accessories for Build-a-Bear bears fit the Friends 2B Made dolls, too. In this photo, Suzanna, Hillary, and Abigail are typing in information about their dolls in order to get printed-out birth certificates for them. The girls had brought along gift cards to spend, too, so they bought extra outfits for their bears and dolls. It was fun to watch them select clothes and shoes to match and to total no more than their gift cards allowed--they seemed so serious about it!

When we got back to the hotel, we took Dad and Beverly to the Green Mill (also next to the hotel) for supper, where I had some delicious chicken Marsala with grilled garlic potatoes. The server agreed to take our family photo before we left:

Standing: Sandy, Hillary, Cathy, Suzanna, Susan, me, and Abigail; seated: Beverly and Dad

When we got back to the hotel, the few remaining relatives gathered one last time to spend the night visiting, snacking, drinking, and bidding farewell. It was a terrific weekend with opportunities for us to see distant-ish relatives again as well as to reunite with my own sisters and dad!

Susan took the girls to the hotel swimming pool after supper tonight so they could have some more fun in the water while I stayed in the Magnolia Room to visit my relatives.

Aune Family Reunion 2009: Day 2

Happy Independence Day! Yesterday as we drove, we listened to National Public Radio and enjoyed hearing what has become an annual feature on NPR this time of year: the reading of the Declaration of Independence by NPR's hosts, commentators, reporters, and newscasters. It was so stirring to hear the words read aloud with meaningful expression and with awesome music in the background. You can hear it yourself (as well as read along) here.

Okay, on to my reunion recap (recall Day 1 of this reunion?): The Holiday Inn Express Hotel and Suites of Eagan, MN serves the best complimentary breakfast of any hotel I've ever stayed at, so far as I can recall. This morning Susan, the girls, and I joined the hordes of other Aunes staying at the hotel in over-running the dining area just off the lobby for cheese omelets, waffles, English muffins, biscuits and gravy, doughnuts, fruits, cereal, juice, coffee, etc. It was delicious and another fine opportunity to visit with relatives. (Interesting tidbit: We also saw and visited with a family from our church in Dickinson! They're here for a little vacation this weekend and just happened to select the same hotel that we did. What are the odds?!)

Eagan is having its annual 4th of July Funfest this weekend, and we could have attended the parade this morning. However, that would have meant cutting short the visiting, so we skipped the parade. Bea's family had arranged several daytime options for the Aunes today: those interested in golfing did so early this morning; the female first cousins or wives of first cousins (that's my dad's generation) met in the hotel's Magnolia Room for a catered dinner at noon (this is a tradition carried over from past Aune reunions); and those interested in swimming met at noon at Cascade Bay Waterpark (not far from the park where last night's festivities were held) for splashing, sunburning, and dining on hot dogs, chips, and soda. Here are some highlights:

Susan and I elected not to swim, instead keeping a watchful eye on the children and manning the cameras (Susan had ours, and I took photos using the camera of my sister Sandy, who frolicked in the water with the others). I don't know what's going on in this photo, but isn't that a weird facial expression that I'm rockin'?

Here are my sisters Sandy and Cathy, chatting poolside between trips down the waterslides with their nieces.

Here are Suzanna (in the orange), Abigail (green), and Hillary (turquoise) shooting out one of the waterslides.

And here they are in a more serene moment, floating down the "lazy river."

Here's Sandy with some of the slides in the background. The next few pics are more shots of the waterpark's slides. It's a great facility, and the kids had a blast playing in the water this afternoon.

All the Aunes gathered back at Blackhawk Park again for tonight's supper: a pig roast catered by Divine Swine Catering. While we waited for the food to be set out, the girls led Susan and me on a short walk to Blackhawk Lake, which looked just lovely beneath the setting sun. (The lake is kinda swampy--less of a lake in which one might want to swim and more of a slough at which one might want to gaze from the safety of the bridge or the shore. But legitimately pretty nevertheless, tucked as it is amongst the trees.) A short while later, the caterers served tangy coleslaw and potato salad alongside both pork and turkey with a delicious barbecue sauce on the side, and we ate and drank and visited. Here are some highlights:

See? Isn't Blackhawk Lake pretty when one cannot see the algae up close? That bridge is picturesque, too. We stood in the middle of it awhile and watched fishes and frogs moving around in the lake, darting between fronds of underwater vegetation.

This swine tasted divine but looks a bit gruesome. Notice the apple lying on the aluminum foil near the pig's snout--nice touch!

For dessert, Bea's family served Norwegian baking, including these kransekaker ["wreath cakes"], also called Norwegian wedding cakes. They're made of ground almonds, powdered sugar, and egg whites. We may not have been home for me to cook for Scandinavian Saturday, but we got our Scandinavian cuisine just the same!

Hillary got a bit too much sun this afternoon and started feeling unwell at suppertime. Although last night we took the shuttle from the hotel to the park, this evening we drove ourselves; so I had a vehicle at the park and was able to take Hillary to a store to buy some children's pain reliever and a bottle of aloe vera gel. She and I returned to the hotel so that she could take the medicine and I could cover her face and shoulders in aloe vera. She grabbed her blankie and stuffed animal, and we got back in the vehicle. On the way back to the park, she asked if she could take a nap, so I purposely drove around Eagan to pass some time so that she could rest.

By the time we got back to the park, she was alert and feeling much better. However, we had totally missed tonight's program! People had been asked beforehand to provide entertainment, so those willing had signed up to sing and play musical instruments. Our family decided to do something a little different and planned to teach everybody some of the Norwegian folk dances that we learned at Camp Trollfjorden. Susan, Suzanna, and Abigail were able to do that without Hillary and me, and they said that it went well; and many people afterward reported that they'd had a blast learning and dancing those dances, so it seems to have been a hit. Here are some highlights from the entertainment (that Hillary and I missed):

My stepmom asked Suzanna, Abigail, and Hillary to sing their a capella version of "Amazing Grace," which became a duet after I bolted with Hillary. I think Suzanna and Abigail got in on some more singing with my sisters, too.

Here are some Aunes doing one of the Norwegian folk dances that Susan, Suzanna, and Abigail taught them. We're all used to dancing at wedding dances, street dances, and similar events, so I'm not surprised that people were willing to get onto their feet and try out some new dances. In fact, my cousin's daughter, whose wedding is this upcoming weekend back in ND, asked us to bring the music to her wedding dance so that we can teach people there these dances!

Here is my dad (farthest left) playing accordion with his sister Rose's four children, who are great accordion players and who often treat us to performances at Moberg get-togethers (see this, this, and this). They were just putting away their instruments when Hillary and I returned, but I'm assuming they were all terrific, as usual.

My sister Sandy brought a tripod and used her camera's timer to capture a photo of the whole group. This looks like a bunch of people, but it's only those who were in attendance this weekend--there are still other Aunes who did not attend!

Bea's kids knew a location nearby from which one could view the fireworks displays of all the surrounding cities, but we five were amongst those who decided to skip it, avoiding a battle with traffic and mosquitoes by returning to the hotel instead. The hotel let us use the Magnolia Room as a gathering spot, and we packed ourselves in for more drinking, eating, and visiting. We couldn't ask for a better central meeting place than what our hotel has turned out to be. It was another great day!

Aune Family Reunion 2009: Day 1

We're having another Aune family reunion! (Remember the last one?) My paternal grandmother and her five siblings were Aunes. Of the six of them, only my grandma and two of her sisters had children, so there are no descendents named "Aune"; but that's how we refer to ourselves when we gather for reunions of the children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren of my grandmother and her two sisters who did have children.

These reunions started in 1997 with a get-together hosted at the home of my great-aunt Bea (Grandma's sister) and her husband Bert, then living in Williston, ND. They and their children organized a weekend of activities over the Fourth of July, and we have made that holiday our scheduled time of year for Aune family reunions. The next one was in 2002, hosted by the family of my great-aunt June (Grandma's sister, who died last fall) and her husband Bobby in Minot, ND. The last one was in 2005, hosted by the family of my grandma Olga and her husband John (both deceased by then) and held at Grandma and Grandpa's former home (now my uncle's house) on my dad's farm between McGregor and Battleview, ND.

That makes it Bea's family's turn to host again, and her daughter Shelley (and her husband Kevin) invited everyone to Eagan, MN (where they live) this weekend for the 2009 reunion. Susan, the girls, and I left Dickinson just after 5:00 A.M. (6:00 A.M. in Eagan) so that we'd have plenty of time to stop as needed along the way and to check in to our hotel before attending the first event of the reunion: registration followed by supper at Blackhawk Park.

Bea's kids are good organizers: they arranged for a shuttle between the hotel and the park so that people who didn't wish to drive wouldn't have to; and when we checked in at the park's pavilion, they collected money for tomorrow night's catered supper; they had us update our contact information (phone numbers, mailing and e-mail addresses) so that they can make a spreadsheet to distribute before the weekend is over; they had us sign up to provide entertainment after supper tomorrow; they distributed water bottles, key chains, and candies with "Aune" printed on them; and they collected money for the cookbooks that they had had made using recipes that we had submitted over the past few months.

Furthermore, they arranged for a discount for a block of rooms at our hotel for all us out-of-towners attending the reunion. Consequently most of us are staying at the same hotel and will be able to see one another even when not gathered for the various planned events of the reunion. There were lots of mini-reunions in the lobby, parking lot, and hallways of the hotel this afternoon; and tonight, after returning from the park, many of us gathered to snack, drink, and visit in a meeting area just outside our rooms. Very convenient!

When the shuttle arrived at the park and we disembarked, we were greeted by this sign in the parking lot:

(Another one beside it said "Parking for Lefse Lovers Only.") We made our way up the hill to the pavilion and registered. Soon pizza was delivered, and we ate, drank, and visited. The kids played together on the nearby playground equipment, on the even nearer-by volleyball court, and on the hiking trails in the park. It was a great setting for our get-together!

The pavilion is basically a V-shaped covered patio with a building attached to the corner of the V. There are tables with benches arranged all over the patio, and the building houses a kitchenette and restrooms. The brick wall behind these visiting relatives belongs to the kitchen/restroom building.

Next to one leg of the V is this amphitheatre-ish area surrounding a fire pit and overlooking the volleyball court. After supper, the kids roasted marshmallows here for s'mores.

It has been good to see so many relatives, including my own two sisters (from NE and OR) and my dad and stepmom (from ND), here for the reunion. Stay tuned for more throughout the weekend!

Surprise Visit for a 50th Anniversary

I grew up in a family that stayed connected with extended family members by visiting my relatives' houses regularly for birthdays and anniversaries, by attending my cousins' confirmations and graduations and weddings, by attending my aunts' and uncles' and great-aunts' and great-uncles' funerals, etc. My dad is one of six children, and my mom was one of eight, so I have a lot of cousins. And because I'm the youngest cousin on one side and among the youngest on the other, many of my cousins had children whom I got to know while I was still a kid myself.

On my dad's side, we still get together occasionally, especially for weddings, funerals, and some holidays (and for my cousins' kids' graduations, when the drive isn't too great). On Mom's side, though, it's pretty rare these days. She seemed to be the instigator of get-togethers amongst her siblings, and nobody has stepped up to plan the occasional reunion since Mom died eight years ago. My cousins are spread around the country, busy with their own families (at nearly 40, I'm the youngest cousin--so imagine the ages of my cousins' kids--and grandkids--and how busy their own lives must be!), so it would take some deliberate planning to gather everybody in one spot at the same time. I understand what keeps us apart, but I miss getting together.

So, when I learned that my cousin Jill was throwing a party today in Minot, ND for the 50th anniversary of her parents, Betty and Herman (my mom's oldest brother), I knew that we should attend. Jill is close in age to my sisters and made for a good playmate when we'd get together. Betty is a gentle lady who always fed us well when we'd spend holidays at their house; I especially recall her bundt cake, riced potatoes, and flatbread. Herman liked to tease gently, but he always seemed interested in my school accomplishments and proud of me, reminding me with a smile on each visit, "Remember, I'm your favorite uncle." We were pleased to be able to be at their party this afternoon!

The girls had to sing for church in Dickinson, but we left immediately afterward and arrived an hour into the party held at Herman and Betty's church in Minot. We hadn't told anyone that we'd be coming, so the relatives whom we saw were surprised to see us! There was much ooh-ing and aah-ing over how much everybody had changed since the last time we had seen one another--and, of course, some of them had never even met our children before today. We made sure to take lots of photos and to visit quickly before the party wrapped up and people started heading home. We spent six hours (round-trip) on the road for probably one-and-a-half hours of interaction with relatives, but it was worth it!

Afterward we did a little clothes shopping at the Dakota Square before eating supper at the Royal Fork and then heading back to Dickinson. I'm usually the chauffeur, but Susan drove for this trip so that I could get some work done on the laptop for a meeting first thing tomorrow morning. (Thank you, Susan.) But now it's time to get to what most of you have come here for: the photographs!

The happy couple! Fun fact: Herman is wearing the same suit that he wore for their wedding! It's a dark blue wool suit that still looks in style and not at all "vintage"; if he hadn't told me, I never would have guessed that it was a 50-year-old suit.

And here are Betty and Herman with their youngest nephew (me) and their great-nieces Suzanna, Hillary, and Abigail. Do you see any family resemblance?

And here we are with my cousin Jill, Herman and Betty's daughter and the planner of the day's event.

The oldest of eight children, Herman is followed in the line-up of siblings by William (deceased), Curtis (next to me in the photo above), Marcella (in Washington), Adeline (in Kansas), Lucille (in Williston, ND), Lawrence (in the photo below), and my mom, Mary Ann (deceased).

And here's Lawrence (who's also one of my godparents). Since I see my maternal aunts and uncles infrequently, whenever I do, I am struck by how much more they seem to resemble one another now than they did when I was a child and saw them more often. Also, I saw in Herman, Curtis, and Lawrence today gestures or expressions or facial features that reminded me of Mom or Grandma (their mom, also deceased)--so it was especially nice to be around them and experience the happy reminders.

This is my cousin Cleone, Curtis' oldest child. Our cousin Mary Beth, William's youngest child, had been at the party, too, but left before we arrived, so we didn't get to see her. We also didn't get to see Layne and his wife Jo or Shar and her husband Ben (Layne and Shar are two of Lawrence's kids). Jill, Cleone, Mary Beth, Shar, Layne, and I were the cousins present today.

Well, in fact, another cousin was present today, too: my cousin Myrna, who is actually my cousin on the other side of the family! She's my dad's older brother's youngest child, and next to her is her mom, Goldie (who's also one of my godparents). Both of them live in Minot, and Myrna happens to be Jill's friend as well as my cousin. Myrna helped Jill with organizing the event, keeping the food stocked throughout the afternoon, etc.

Here we are with even more relatives! From left to right: my great-aunt Marian (Dad's dad's sister), Abigail, Gisela (more on her in a second), Hillary, me, my great-aunt Arlene (Dad's dad's other sister), Suzanna, and Carl (Mom and Herman's cousin as well as Dad's former business partner as well as Gisela's husband). Marian and Arlene live in Minot, too, but Carl and Gisela drove from Tioga for the afternoon . . . and they were leaving the Royal Fork just as we were arriving for supper, so we saw a lot of them today!