Family Fun

Sunset off Gwynn's Island

This weekend we had one of our infamous Saturday night family dinners that included boatloads of seafood my parents, my children,  Chesapeake Bay Daughter's BFF who was spending the night, Chesapeake Bay Baby Sister, and her friend of many years, Dino.

We ate, we laughed, we went back for thirds and fourths seconds, and then we did what most normal people do after a large meal.

We donned crab hats and challenged each other to a game of very serious, very intense driveway basketball.

The cast of characters  teams (and the hats they wore) were as follows:

The Youngsters:  Chesapeake Bay Son (wearing a mad hatter top hat),  CB Daughter (sombrero) and Daughter's BFF (winter stocking cap)

The Oldies:  Chesapeake Bay Woman (crab hat!), CB Baby Sister (crab hat!!) and Dino (safari hat)

The Spectators laughing and pointing at the spectacle before them who wisely opted to watch but who did participate in the free throw contest:  Chesapeake Bay Parents.

(They weren't wearing hats at the time but later on CB Mumma whipped out her cowboy hat, recently acquired from Tractor Supply, and I do believe CB Daddy had on a Krispy Kreme paper hat at one point in the evening-- I know one was floating around.)

As I said, this is how everyone spends their Saturday night.  Right?  Aaaalll righty then.

There were a series of challenges:

Round One  - First team to score ten points.  Winner?  The Oldies

Round Two - First team to score a basket.  Winner?  The Oldies
(And may I add that it took Forever and a Day for that one basket to be scored.  It was brutal. See below regarding the rules, which essentially meant no break in play for any reason, up to and including bloodied knees and punctured hands.)

Round Three - Free Throw Contest.  Won by the Youngsters, specifically CB Daughter's BFF who was on fire at the foul line.

Round Four - First team to score six points.  Winner?  OLDIES!

The rules were nonexistent loosey goosey, at best:

-There was no such thing as out of bounds.  The ball was always in play until a basket was scored.
-No fouls were called.
-Yelling was always coming from me because I couldn't stop talking trash encouraged, and I apologize here and now to all the neighbors on Queens Creek who heard a crazed woman in a crab hat screaming sometimes to her teammates and other times to her own beloved children opponents, "STRIP IT!  STRIP THAT MESS!  BLOCK IT!  BLOCK THAT MESS! OH NO YOU DON'T! YOU'RE NOT GONNA MAKE THAT BASKET, NOT AS LONG AS I'M OUT HERE, YOU'RE NOT! DON'T EVEN TRYYYYY!"

Then my head spun around a few times, crab hat claws were flying, and plenty laughter was heard coming from the vicinity of the spectators.

(Children?  When your mother dons a crab hat and is playing any sport competitively, the opponent is meant to be taunted, even if they are her own beloved children.  Please try to forget all of her smack talk when filling out your Mother's Day cards next weekend.  I promise to resume my usual role of showering you with positive praise and encouragement rather than I'M GONNA STEAL THAT BALL FROM YOU AND THERE'S NOOOOTHIIIIING YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT! Love you both! Oh, and Chesapeake Bay Son, I can't believe you won all those jump ball scenarios.  I demand a rematch soon.  Veeeeery soon.) 

The following is a list of minor injuries incurred during the above altercation competition, which, I failed to mention, was played on a combination of old pavement and loose gravel, with a mound of last year's mulch covered in pine needles serving as an additional tripping hazard very near the playing area:

1.  Puncture/abrasion wounds to the hands - Chesapeake Bay Son
2.  Aggravated back injury - Chesapeake Bay Baby Sis
3.  One very bloody knee - Chesapeake Bay Woman
4.  Two incredibly sore shoulders - Dino
5.  Multiple bruised ribs sore from laughing - Chesapeake Bay Parents
6.  Memories of a wonderful family affair that involved good food, good fun, and some great outdoor exercise and entertainment in spite of the injuries -  All.

p.s. Later in the evening, Baby Sis and Dino went to Food Lion to purchase a few necessities.  Baby Sis wore her crab hat and said several people were intrigued.  I'm telling you, the secret to happiness lies in a crab hat, and I'm seriously considering selling them as a side business after I get done with the book. They may not make me rich, but they will make me and many others happy. And that, after all, much like a simple family gathering, is priceless.