COWSHED

Wednesday 15 September 2010

On being married & extended family


Last weekend, husband's extended family spent the weekend in Somerset. His brother and his wife and the dog stayed with us, his parents and Granny in the upmarket B&B across the road and his aunt and uncle in their campervan. 9 of us sat round the table above for supper on Saturday, 7 of us went to see Germaine Greer speak on Saturday evening, 6 of us drank wine whilst engaging in *ahem* discussions about what she said (and how she flung herself at my husband afterwards), 4 of us stayed up drinking until the early hours, 8 of us walked 4 miles along the coast and picked hoardes of blackberries in soothing golden September sunshine, 9 of us ate lunch outside in the garden whilst drinking lots of champagne in sunshine that was so hot that hats were handed out, 7 of us had afternoon tea on the harbour front, another bottle of champagne watching the sun go down on the deck of said B&B and then the same 7 had a kitchen supper back at our flat. Husband cooked 7 kilos of sirloin steak. I made savoury muffins and cupcakes and soups and salads and coffee and everyone ate everything. It was busy, it was full and it was wonderful.

It's a little quiet now though.

9 comments:

anna and the ring said...

Extended family is one of the best reasons for getting married.

(But I guess we are lucky.)

Cate S said...

Ok. I will make a bigger effort to enjoy my in-laws on holiday after reading this. Thank you.

And GG threw herself at your husband?!

Marie-Ève said...

This all sounds absolutely lovely. That table was like a little piece of art, especially with the roses from your own garden...

Marie said...

This sounds divine. It's such a blessing to get on well with your in-laws, one which I myself am very lucky to experience too. And all the food sounds just wonderful too, sigh, happy days...

Kristy said...

That sounds like a wonderful weekend. The quiet immediately after everyone leaves can be like a sigh of relief, but then it feels just a little too quiet.

(She threw herself at your husband? How classy and respectful of her. Yeesh. (end sarcasm))

elle said...

How marvellous. And how melancholy, at the end.

And how incredible of Ms. Greer.

Spare Thoughts said...

sounds like an amazing weekend. I love my extended family. Beautifully written.

Anonymous said...

I imagine it is all a little quiet now; it's been a long time since my famiy were all together but to be honest, it's probably for the best!

Lovely picture.

CJ xx

Beth said...

What a glorious time you had with them. Okay...I'll give my inlaws another chance. ;-)