I did it again: 16 grown ups and 3 children. It wasn’t my intention to have such a large gathering…
Originally, I had planned for my children, who are scattered across different states, to come for a family weekend at our house in Hampton for a week. However, ever since two of our children got married, our immediate family alone has grown to 10, with 8 adults and 2 children.
Then, my nephew from Germany came to spend 5 weeks with his wife and son. I invited two more nephews, Jon and David, so they could meet their cousin from Germany. Naturally, they came with their plus ones, Emily and Lisa. And that wasn’t all. My sister from Washington DC asked if she could stay over for a couple of nights while visiting her in-laws in NY. Why not? We had a spare room.
One way or another, our house seems to fill up with guests all year round.
We purchased a small 3-bedroom house in East Hampton about 10 years ago. It’s an old town near the ocean, with a different atmosphere compared to NYC. Originally intended as a weekend getaway, we’ve been spending more time in Hampton than Brooklyn since the pandemic hit.
After buying the house, we renovated it, adding a couple more bedrooms to accommodate our growing family. Eventually, we ended up adding a whole new wing with 5 additional bedrooms because there always seemed to be more guests than bedrooms during holidays.
New York is a popular destination, and many people from out of state or even out of the country come to visit us. Luckily, we enjoy having people over. Whether it’s for brunch or a simple meal, we don’t hesitate to offer guests a place to stay overnight when needed. When someone visits NYC, we insist they stay with us instead of paying for a hotel, as hotels in NYC are always expensive.
We host frequently in NYC, but our Hampton house sees its fair share of guests as well. Due to the distance from NYC, inviting someone to Hampton usually means an overnight stay, as a day trip is challenging with Hampton being 100 miles away. Spending a night together without the worry of returning to the city makes everyone feel relaxed. There’s a strange closeness that develops as we share stories over a home-cooked breakfast.
Our cousin weekend, instead of a family weekend, was a success. Feeding 19 people three meals a day for a week wasn’t easy, but every table was filled with laughter. Cousins who hadn’t seen each other in some time, and wives who were meeting for the first time, all became like family.
There’s a saying in Korean: “You are happy to see your grown children, but you are happier when they go back to their own places.” They all came like a rushing tide and then receded. We were left with a house to clean, but we were happy to have peace and quiet again. As we cleaned the house like seasoned professionals, I realized that we host far more than an ordinary household.
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