NJ Weekend Family Fun

Last week, my dad and stepmom were in town for a visit. They spent three nights in the city with me, and then we all went to the beach in New Jersey to visit with my aunt, uncle and cousins who live there. Both parts of the trip were a lot of fun! They did sight-seeing during the day and at night, we either had dinner together or.. on one of the nights, went to see Cirque du Soleil, which was actually pretty incredible!

Steve had been out in Amagansett all week for a vacation arranged months ago, but he volunteered to give up the final weekend there so that he could get to meet and spend time with my dad and his wife -- so so nice. We all drove out to the beach together on Friday, and had a seriously fantastic time catching up with the family out there. Happily (and unsurprisingly), Steve hit it off really well with everyone! By the end of the weekend, he'd been invited to join my uncle and cousin in a sailboat race, and they and their team came in first place. :)

My adorable boyfriend.... I cut myself out of this photo because it was terrible of me... that's my hair on the left!

Here is my dad, enjoying a margarita at a waterside restaurantMy step-mom and aunt, having a little gossip session on the boat...
Sitting with Steve at the front of the boat

There were a few band-related things worth noting about the weekend. First, I hadn't seen my aunt, uncle and cousins since I got banded. So, I was down 80 or so pounds from my last visit, four years ago (I'm not sure what I weighed then, since I was in scale-avoidance mode). Thank goodness for Facebook... my cousin's wife had seen my photos through the last few years, and showed a few to the family before I got there, so it wasn't a big surprise to see how I looked. Actually, they didn't make a big deal about it at all. I think people just don't know what the right thing to say is, and would rather not say anything than risk saying the wrong thing.

Second, my uncle has a huge family, and several of his siblings and their children have homes in the area. They are a great bunch, and I've gotten to know them through the years. We actually ran into two of the uncles when we were at the beach. I was wearing my Lilly Pulitzer bikini and actually was feeling really embarassed to have so little on when I saw them for the first time. Not that I was inappropriately dressed (it was the beach, after all). It was more the feeling of showing up 80 pounds lighter, in a bikini. I just felt a little weird for the first 20 seconds, and then it was fine.

Third, I actually enjoyed going to the beach with the family and wasn't dreading having to be in a bathing suit! That really added to my fun and has been a constant bonus for the last two summers. :)