MIA

Yep, I've been missing in action for almost two weeks. I know it's hard to believe, computer nut that I am. I am just up to my eyeballs in projects that MUST be done this month. I even missed blogging about the Fourth of July--a major holiday came and went, and I didn't even post pics! I took them, but I was just too tired to blog them.

But I'm making up for it now, with more pictures of our family cabin weekend than you could ever want to see!

First, a few random tidbits about our weekend. Things I've learned, special memories, signs of progress, etc.:

• Dallin had a few moments of absolutely stellar behavior, the sort of stuff that makes me have hope that he will turn out to be a compassionate human being after all. I was touched that when the other cousins were excluding cousin I from their fort, Dallin expressed sadness on her behalf and actually went out of his way to play just with her. (And she's even a girl, which makes this act of kindness even more unusual. And he had to stand up to his best bud boy cousin to do it.)
• And then Aunt L told me that she noticed Dallin, when the kids were playing Ninja Tag, allowing his younger cousin N to tag him out, and doing it in such a way that N had no idea Dallin was "letting" him do it. Go Dallin! Make you Momma proud!
• I've learned that Sariah must be a girl at heart. I knew it, but now I REALLY know it. She actually chose getting her fingernails painted by cousin E over riding the "three-wheeler", as she called it. Though luckily, four-wheeler turns did come later.
• I've also learned that I should have packed WAY more than three pairs of pants for Sariah. She soaked them all and we had to resort to borrowing cousin A's diaper at the end of the last day. I kind of forgot that even successfully potty-trained girls get distracted in the woods.
• I already knew that air mattresses aren't made for co-sleeping. On that wise, once Sariah was asleep, we moved her to her own little sleeping bag. But in the middle of the night, she woke up disoriented and crying. Actually she woke up more than once, and every time she did, she woke up her baby cousin R. And every time he woke up crying, he woke up Sariah. Between the two of them, they kept each other and everyone else awake more than their fair share.
• But once when Sariah woke up, she wanted to come into the very small air bed with James and me. Apparently she began to regret that decision, because as soon as she laid down and snuggled up with Daddy, she began to cry, "Ooh, your breath stinks!!" When Daddy responded with, "Shhh, go to sleep," she became even madder: "Stop talking, Daddy, you stink!"
• Cool and overcast in the middle of July is awesome!
• The highlight of my weekend was sitting out on the deck, all by myself (a feat in and of itself when you have 20 people in a cabin), enjoying the peace and quiet, when I looked up in the sky and saw a lone hawk soaring overhead. It was magnificent! Now, ordinarily I would have thought nothing of this, but a few weeks ago when I helped at our regional 11-year-old Scout daycamp, we had a guy come and do a bird show, and he brought several hawks, eagles, and falcons and told us all about them. So I can say I learned something good from Scouts--without that experience, I would have thought nothing of this bird soaring overhead.
• The other highlight was spending 5 hours shopping with the women in the family at the outlets in Park City while the men watched the kids. We can't be too far from civilization!

The whole gang.
Sariah and baby R.
All the girls got their nails done, just for fun.

Heading down the hill to the fort.

This was a way cool fort, created underneath some trees. Note the lack of shoes or socks on a certain child's feet. I learned that three pairs of socks is not enough either. She doesn't like to wear them, but she sure thinks she needs to get them good and dirty before discarding them in all sorts of out-of-the-way places.

Another view of the fort.

All ready to go with her helmet.

Dallin waiting patiently and pensively for his turn to ride. He was one of the last kids.
At last, Uncle M and Dallin are ready to go on a ride that Dallin describes as "freakin' fast"!

Sariah's turn!

Beautiful pink wildflowers right in the middle of all this green.

Who wouldn't want to spend the weekend here???

The cousins helping wrap potatoes for lunch.

Little cuties Sariah and A.