a little family time

So after getting off to a delayed start for my vacation time, I was finally able to spend time with my sister who came into town on Thursday night from Houston for a long weekend. She's lived in Seattle for about six months a couple of years ago, and she's been out here a couple of times since she moved back to the South. I have another sister who lives out here too, and so it was so nice to have some time together.

Saturday -- Ultimate Tourists
Saturday was a beautiful day and we spent most of it downtown walking around the waterfront, going to the market, and just generally enjoying the time to walk around. It also just so happened that my former boss/dear friend was in town visiting with his partner and so I had arranged a dinner for us to meet up. Peter so he could meet my sisters and R, and vice versa. I started to feel bad for R as we immersed ourselves in trivial conversation about celebrities, music and other non-essential topics. But R was a good sport and would occasionally pipe in when he could. I'm telling you, if this man can put up with me, he's a keeper. :)

Sunday -- Visiting the Biological Niece
Sunday my sisters and I headed up to a nearby island community to visit a family that is very special to us -- the adoptive family for my sister's biological daughter. My sister was in college when she found out she was pregnant, and soon after, the father took off not even acknowledging for most of the pregnancy that he was the father. We were fortunate enough to meet a couple through some acquaintances who were desperately looking to have a family of their own but were unable. As destiny would have it, they were willing to enter an open adoption and my sister has the opportunity to visit her daughter.

The baby is no longer a baby. We haven't seen Sam in two years and she is a beautiful, bubbly 2.5 year old toddler, and the spitting image of my sister. It's really uncanny. My other sister who lives here has never met Sam or the adoptive family, so this was a treat for her to meet a niece for the first time. It was such a bittersweet day. Soaking up all the time with the two kids. The family also adopted a little boy that's 5 months older than Sam. They call it "twins with a twist."

While my sister spent time with Sam, my other sister and I stayed in the background, cameras out and ready to capture the single day out of the year that biological mother and daughter get to spend together. It felt a little bit like playing wedding photographer. :)

The day was winding down and the kids were starting to get tired and clearly needed to begin getting ready for bed. And so our day on the island was over.

Monday -- A Little Vino and Music
Nothing more invigorating than knowing everyone else is at work while I'm out driving around town. We decided to do some wine tasting, and headed out to the wineries to get some wine my sister wanted to take back to Houston with her. We then picked up my other sister and we had a late lunch out on the waterfront. Yet another gorgeous day.

But the highlight of the day was actually the concert we went to that evening. R came with me, my two sisters, and my brother in law. Toad the Wet Sprocket, and the fabulous Matt Nathanson, who opened for the band. Matt was not only a great musician, but a terrific comedian and entertainer as well. I made sure I bought a copy of his CD during the intermission.

Back to Toad, it was like a sing a long for me. I had seen them perform 12 years ago when I was still in college. Every song that they sang was just a flashback to the glory days. And so I went into the CD archives at home and retrieved their two albums that I own -- Dulcinea and Coil. I think I'll keep these in the car for a little while.

What a great way to end the weekend.