Reed Family BBQ

This past weekend the girls and I traveled to Murfreesboro, TN, where my Uncle Joel lives.  Uncle Joel is my dad's brother and the oldest sibling left of the bunch.  Everyone decided that this would also be a good time for everyone to get together like a mini-family reunion, since most of the time we see each other is at funerals.  It is funny how they all traveled up, and I was the only on to travel south.  I actually was not the farthest because my Aunt Montez traveled from Osyka, MS which is right on the line between MS and LA at the bottom of the state.  I do think she may have done hers in 2 days though.  It was good seeing all the family and catching up on what everyone it doing now.  Some family I had not seen since Emily was a baby, and some we had never met.  Sad, I know.

This year returned his Reed BBQ which has been on hiatus for the past few years due to his health.  He holds it on Sunday which allowed us to go down and be able to come back and not miss any school. Not only family comes to this event but friends, neighbors, and church members.  We had a live country band and wonderful food.  I think my uncle smoked around 20 Boston butts.  It was so good having a true Southern BBQ feast complete with all the trimmings.  I found out that he actually orders his sauce from Ohio of all places.  It is called Mississippi BBQ sauce, what are the odds of that.  At the party I did meet one of their neighbors that is originally from Akron, and a church member of my cousin who has actually been to Newark (he works for State Farm).  The girls had a great time visiting with family and meeting new people.  We hope to be able to go again next year, and who knows we may have a new member of family with us. They also hope Noel is able to come next year as well.

Since all the brothers and sisters where there we took and updated picture of them.  The one on the left is this weekend and the other was taken in 1964.  All are there except my father.  They did have one other brother, but he passed away as an infant.

Present day L to R starting on the bottom - Montez, Joel(who looks most like what my dad would look like today), Gerald, Juanita, and David
1964 L to R starting on the bottom - Montez, Juanita, David, Joel, Daddy, and Gerald