To Read on the Journey

Thursday, August 18, 2011

we're coming to america {part 3}

50th anniversary party!

the decorations


hydrangeas are the flower of the azores islands.
our island, flores {flowers in english} is breathtakingly covered in hydrangeas.


red, white & blue to honor america.


each table's centerpiece shared memories from my family's journey as well as historical facts from 1961.

{btw- we discovered at the party that it was not corn husks that were used in place of t.p., it was the corn cob! ewww}


photos from the 50 years in america were printed in sepia, and hung on twine by clothespins, to create  banners throughout the house.

what a blessing to see our family that began as 8 now be a whopping 53!


more stories were shared as we poured over the family photo albums together.



the food.


with the portuguese it is ALL about the food.
feeding someone well, and their enjoyment of their meal, is an expression of love.
when speaking of my grandmother i often say, "the way to HER heart is through YOUR stomach."


this was the first time the second generation got to feed {love} the first generation. 
i think we fed {loved} them well!


f.y.i. the "portuguese dip" sandwich could easily be mistaken for the french dip sandwich.

the familia {family}.

thank you God for these 50 years!
may You be glorified in the next 50.



do you come from a large family or a small family?

are there any traditions your family has 
when you gather together?

{thank you mel, from the larson lingo, for inspiring the r,w&b  decorations}.


10 comments:

forever folding laundry said...

I love this idea!
What a great legacy your
family has created.

And if the Portugese are all
about food, I think I
would fit in nicely
in your fam.
:)

~Keri

Laurie J said...

HOW FUN! your fam sure knows how to celebrate! here's to 50 more sweet years.....PTL!
<3

Linda Z said...

I love all these cute little touches. I especially love the little story quotes! :) I come from a smaller family, but Patrick's family makes up for it big time! :)

{cuppakim} said...

This is amazing. I think that living on an island covered in hydrangeas would be the best thing ever.


Unless there was an island covered in money ;)

Which I doubt exists.
So hydrangeas FTW!

LOVE all of the tags - super cute - totally were reminding me of Mel until I saw your shout out!

And clearly someone pinterest-ed before this party ;)
You kinda rocked it.

I love that it was the first time 2nd Gen'ers fed the 1st Gens! My family is a bit like that - Grandma is the only one who feeds us hahaha!

And, compared to 53 from 8 - my fan is pretty small - that I know of!

My Great Great Grandmother came here from Ireland...had 4 daughters....great grandma had 2 daughters....grandma had 2 daughters and 1 son, and my mama had 2 daughters. :)

With my grandma as the current matriarch of our branch we have 14 (including in-laws) - 10 without.

And...I should have probably just written my own post by now! ;)

DaCraftyLady said...

What a wondeful 50 years celebration...I loved the hanging of photos I do something simular for my stitching group as I hang a photo of each member from past meetings from the center light with yarn and staple them to shapes made with colored foam, then each member gets to take one home. My next family get together I am going to do the same...usually my children and g-kids come over and they run for my photo shelves where I have separate albums with each of their name son them for them to look through. It keeps our memories alive.... :) great ideas...fun...

TDM Wendy said...

I'm still looking for the eddie murphy cardboard cutout. But I guess what you did was cool too :)
Nice work.
50 years is amazing.

Alana said...

What a cool thing to celebrate and the party pics are amazing!!

Kris said...

Hi there! We are home now from Bass Lake, and I am reading my messages from several of you who live very near where we were!!! We camped at Wishon, right there at Millers Landing. We ate many, if not most of our meals there! A few at The Forks too! I have been going to Bass Lake for 40 years! I love it!!! I am anxious to read more of your blog. Loved the family history, and I see you returned recently from Maui! Another one of our favorite places!!!!
I did not get the Fudge Bucket, but I saw several who did, and now I want to drive straight back there for one!!!!
: ) Kris
PS where do you live?

Jessica Johnson said...

i just watched your coming to america vlog. you kill me. i strongly suggest that your next post be "coming to san mateo" because i already miss your face.

mel @ the larson lingo said...

Love your decorations! Great job. This is the coolest party ever. Your family is awesome!