Aasen Quilting Weekend

For the past nine years, my mom's wonderful six sisters and their families have gathered for the infamous Aasen Quilting Weekend. Nestled snug in a cabin in Northern Minnesota, they get together for quilting, crafts, food, and most of all, the great company.





Now I'm not just saying that because they are my family and I have to. I'm saying it because growing up with such a huge loving family has blessed me in so many ways. I love my aunts, their signature laugh, and the way they love and care so deeply for one another.


(The sisters at "Margaritas and manicures", summer 2008)


There will be lots of food. You can count on some yummy Norwegian treats like lefse, strul, and rommegrot. There will be projects going as well: baby quilts, mitten-making, scrapbooking. Although I'm sure a lot of "work" gets done, I am mostly missing the family time. With the sisters' families all growing, scheduling the holidays is too hectic, and so this is our holiday. This is the weekend where we meet new babies (and there are always new babies!), new significant others, and catch up on the year that has past.





My grandpa Gilly and grandma Marjorie have left quite the legacy. They impressed upon their seven lovely daughters the importance of family. These seven daughters married seven very fine men, built families of their own, and many have married off their own children and become grandparents. I'm sure Grandpa Gilly will be watching over everyone in heaven this weekend, laughing with his great-grandchildren. And if Grandma Marjorie could make the trek from Meadowlark Lane, she would surely be keeping everyone in line and the laundry folded.

So happy "Ant Camp 2009" to you all! I won't be in -30 below weather with you, but I sure will be missing all the hugs, laughter, knee squeezes, and stories. Love and hugs!