Family gatherings are always a good time

My immediate family only gets together for major holidays, which included a Thanksgiving lunch last week.

We don't see each other often, but when we do I think my grandma loses a little faith in all of our sanity. My brother, sister, cousin and I tell on each other, even though our ages range from 20 to 28.

Each of us are hardworking -- whether it be in school or focusing on a career -- but when we get together it is like being children again.

I am not sure what brought up the topic, but my mom said "blender" and three of us cringed.

My sister, cousin and I told the story of when we were really young, and decided to play a "Fear Factor" type game that included a blender.

We looked in the refrigerator at my parent's house to find the most appetizing snack -- hot dogs, ketchup and relish -- and tossed it into the blender.

Mind you, my dad said we could blend whatever we wanted, as long as we promised to eat it. We were young and naive, and had no idea the texture of pureed food was so repulsing.

As we sat at the dinner table last week, and the disgusted looks on our faces as we talked about the concoction caused an eruption of laughter from the rest of the family.

My sister and I accused our cousin of being a bully when we were children, considering she made me eat glue on a dare once.

"What? You guys were twice my size!" was her retort. In my defense, she was quite scary when she threw tantrums.

My brother started talking about how my sister was an evil child, and I had to agree. Especially since she chased me through the house with a pair of scissors and sliced my finger on one occasion.

My mom thought it was funny when she found out about the incident about 13 years after it took place.

Grandma even joined in on the stories, telling on my mom and uncle for doing things they told us to never do.

My family is strange, and sometimes I think they forget their "filters" when we join at the dinner table. Although, at the same time it reminds me how lucky I am to be able to connect with my family.

My poor sister-in-law still doesn't know what to think of us most of the time, even though she has been attending our gatherings for a few years now. She has slowly started to join in the conversations, but I can tell she is holding back.

Surely she has to be a little off to marry my brother!

The "children" of the family have all grown up and slowly grown apart. Although, when we join together on holidays I prepare for a sore stomach, both from overindulging in Grandma's excellent cooking and laughing until I can't breathe.