Boswell Birthday Bash

A couple weeks ago, we made our way back to Johnson City so that we could throw a joint birthday party for Bill and Barbara! Their birthdays are in August and October, so we decided to split the difference and celebrate them in September. We (the Boswell kids) hatched the plan back at the beginning of the year and started officially planning it in the Spring. It went so well, and so many of their friends showed up to party with us!

It was a little tricky to find a time that Tim and Rachael and the four Brad Boswells could all be in Johnson City at the same time. And don't you know, the weekend that worked for us was the weekend of the Battle of (at?) Bristol. So, some folks who would have been at the party couldn't because of having had tickets to the game for a long time. That being the case, we still had over 40 guests!

We also made plans to have some professional family photos taken the morning of the party. It's been a while since the Boswells had professional pictures taken, so it was time. Thankfully, we were able to snag a photographer who came over the house and got us in our natural habitat. It was a really smooth photo shoot; the girls were awesome, and I think it was helpful to have Claire in a really familiar environment (and I bribed her with cookies. Truth.). Can't wait to see the finished products.

I tried to grab little snapshots throughout the weekend so that we'd have decent documentation of a fun weekend. Enjoy!

Tim flew from Minnesota into Raleigh and then rode back and forth to Tennessee with us. It was fun to get extra time hanging out with "Takia." He and Lily hung out a little in the backyard while some other family members were getting their pictures taken.

Flying Lily!

Playing with Papaw.

She was having fun, I promise. She was about an hour past nap time, though so it was a delicate time.

Bill and one of his sisters, Aunt Donna. She brought some awesome pictures of Bill and Barbara through the years that everyone had a blast looking at. (She also brought bubbles for Claire that were VERY appreciated!)

Claire had a blast at the party! Partying is kind of her thing.

We had the party at a large outdoor pavilion next to a lake. I had ordered a bunch of pictures and had planned to hang them up around the pavilion (like the picture above) so that folks could walk around and look at family pictures. This little stretch of pavilion was one of only two sections where we could hang pictures without them going flying, thanks to the breeze. Oh well. It was a good idea in theory.

Say cheese! Also, I had gotten table cloths for the tables, and they gave us such grief, thanks to the breeze. We used copious amounts of tape to keep them down. As in, we ran out of the tape I had taken with us and had to get Rachael to grab some more when she came (we all had different tasks that afternoon and showed up at different times).

Boswell friends holding Boswell babies. Lily made quite a few rounds.

Friends!

More friends!

Neighbors AND friends!

And even more friends. Note: because of the Battle of (at?) Bristol, there were quite a few orange shirts present.

The birthday kids!

Y'all. Have you ever had a Costco cake? They are FABULOUS and such a good deal. There is an amazing layer of ganache inside. Wow. We also had about 3 dozen cookies that I made the day before, after panicking and thinking we wouldn't have enough cake. I'm laughing as I type this.

We had a time for friends and family to say a few things about Bill and Barbara. Nice things, mostly.

No really. Everyone had lovely things to say. And funny things!

Claire even joined in with the humor, laughing hysterically along with the crowd and then, very loudly when everyone else quieted down, asking, "What are we talking about?" Bless.

We had super good barbecue and fixins + cake, cookies, and ice cream. The menu was a winning choice.

This was part of the view. We definitely could have done a lot worse.

We stayed for church and lunch on Sunday, which was Ray Ray's birthday! She chose this fun restaurant for lunch. If you're ever in Johnson City, we highly recommend Cootie Brown's. Yum and fun.

The girls and Aunt Sue, whose birthday was actually the next day.

Smiling with Gran right before loading up to head out.

I tried so hard to get a good picture of the girls and Rachael on her birthday. This was the best I got.

Because most of them looked like this. Why do I even try?

We had a great time celebrating my wonderful in-laws. I think it was a great testimony to their kindness and generosity that so many friends came to celebrate them. Happy birthdays, Bill and Barbara! We love you!