Grandma Guinn's 70th Birthday Bash

Happy 70th Birthday Grandma Guinn! What a great excuse to get the whole family together! There was a lot of rearranging and figuring out schedules to get such a big clan together for a few days, but the reward was grand. So grand that we had to take a picture with the (almost) whole family!

Top Left: Travis Mitchell, Forrest Mitchell, me, Paul, Steve Guinn, Alex Mitchell, Lucas Mitchell, Corbin and Wendy Guinn, Lydia and Nathan Brooks, Matthew Guinn Second Row: Lynnette Mitchell, Christina Mitchell, Reina, Baelor, Nicholas Mitchell, Degan Guinn, Julie and Benjamin Guinn  Bottom Row: Bryan Guinn, Logan Guinn, Brecken Guinn, Lauren Guinn, Madeleine Guinn, Grandma and Grandmpa Guinn, Jessica Brooks Not Pictured: brother Brad Guinn and family

 

 

We all headed down mid-July to Honeyman Beach near Florence, Oregon . This is Grandma Guinn's stomping ground of her younger days. She grew up near hear in Newport and Coo's Bay. Paul remembers coming to this exact campsite as a young boy.

Playing with cousin Lauren

Corbin, Wendy and Bryan (Paul's brother)

Degan being tackled by Reina (in jammies)

We had about 6 campsites all stringed together. Luckily we were close to the bathrooms (but not too close) and playground. We camped 2 nights and enjoyed spending time with cousins and aunts and uncles that we, sadly, don't get to see very often.

Sand as far as the eye could see

Grandpa Guinn taking it all in as the grandkids play

The weather was pretty good for beach weather on the Oregon Coast...clear and sunny during the day, but the wind would pick up at night and make it a little chilly. No rain and sunny days? I'll take it! The sand dunes were a fun addition to our fun. We tried to make a slick path with snow discs to coast down the sand, but even with MANY attempts and MANY people, it still did not work! Although it was fun trying!

The Mitchell boys trying to get our sand chute to work

Each family took part in a meal which made it a lot easier to plan. I highly recommend doing this with a large party as there is less to stress about when planning and packing.

Salmon cooked the Grandpa Don way!

One of the highlights was the big birthday celebration! This included festive decorations, a sand castle cake made by cousins Christina and Jessica, Grandpa Don's famous salmon recipe, and (most exciting) a skit!

This was created by Paul and Matt highlighting stories and events from Grandma Guinn's life. It started with some of her childhood memories, teen years, motherhood, and a little roasting as well! A lot of us had to play various roles in the skits. It was so fun to see Grandma Guinn's reactions!

Grandma Guinn laughed through the entire thing

A dramatic reenactment of the many trips to Utah Paul took with his family

It was fun catching up with family members we don't see often. I was impressed with the musical talent of this family...seriously blessed with every aspect of music; creation, development, range and execution! We did karaoke in town before we headed to the beach and saw so much talent. I even did a song even though I am not keen on singing in front of people all by myself. Probably my favorite highlight of our karaoke evening was when the large group of us who went did a duet, backup singers, and backup dancers all together! I know there is video footage out there that I gotta snag!

I love how this family hugs each other whenever, wherever (Mitchell boys)

  Our evenings around the campfire also added to my regard for the musical skill possessed by nearly everyone with Guinn blood coursing through their veins. Hopefully it passes on to all of our kids. Reina sings in tune and Baelor will sing any song who's words are "ball, ball, ball". (Okay, Paul had to add that whole blood thing for a little pizzazz!) We are so blessed to have such a wonderful BIG family. It is beyond my brain to even imagine the spec of adoration our Heavenly Father feels for His family.

Snuggling with Uncle Steve