Poll Family Staycation

Every year my side of the family does a little mini vacation together. Since we weren't real sure what T's situation was going to be, we planned on doing a Staycation. I'm so glad that we decided to do that, because with the circumstances being as they are, this was the perfect vacation for us. We spent one whole day swimming in my dad's neighbor's pool. There were plenty of chicken fights, being tossed through the air, jumping into the pool & trying to catch a ball, strategies getting/jumping onto floaties, goggle eyed kids, an over crowded hot tub, and simultaneous jumping by all the cousins into the pool. The only time we left was to go potty. It was so nice being together and not having to deal with a crowded public pool. Around dinner time, we took a break and had a BBQ at my dad's house and then immediately went back up to the pool for a little night swimming. That night everyone (well, almost everyone, minus a few adults...myself included) slept out under the stars in my dad's backyard. The adults stayed up 'til 1 in the morning laughing and talking about T, and the kids played kick the can and told ghost stories. In the morning we made breakfast and then went to our own homes for a little break. That night we went to the Raptor's game and watched the fireworks that followed. Like I said, it was perfect! There's only one thing that would have made it better and that's to have had my WHOLE family there. It's amazing the void that's felt when just one person isn't there. There was a lump in my throat the whole time because the feeling of missing T was so overwhelming. When my mom passed away it was a torturous feeling when the family would get together and her presence wasn't there any more. That same feeling is back now that T is gone. He made things so much fun. I loved his easy going, naive, adventurous personality. He was definitely sorely missed by everyone. Nevertheless, we tried our best (and did pretty good I thought) at having a fun time and still making good memories. But at the same time, it's easy to have a good time when I'm around my family!