Utah: Part Two

I only have a few minutes, but I need to record a few things while they're still fresh. I had mixed feelings about our stay in Southern Utah... I was looking forward to being with family and having those there spend time with my kids, but I wasn't especially looking forward to no air conditioning and spending my vacation with babies while Denten got to do the fun stuff... camping and such. Anyway, I had a great time. I'm really glad we went, despite a few inconveniences.

Staying at Grandma Delores' and Grandpa Dale's is comfortable in that they make us feel really at home there, but it's super small and there is no A/C (or shower, or dishwasher...). We stay upstairs in a one-room attic and it gets HOT during the day. A little difficult to nap and you all should know by now that my babies napping is a big deal. It all turned out great- we had enough cloud cover that it didn't get unbearable and I learned that Beckham really likes sleeping in just a diaper!

Cooper had a blast- he played outside all day, every day. It was so fun for him to have such space to run and play and discover. He went fishing each morning with his dad, grandpa, great-grandpa and uncle Drew. He came home the first morning so excited to tell me he caught three fishies!! I'll post photos once I've had a chance to go through them. He also slept outside in a tent with his dad (too hot inside for him!) and loved it. They spent a night up on the mountain in the Horse Valley cabin and rode the 4-wheeler, helped fix fence posts, played in the water trough... it was a dream for him Oh, and he learned what an outhouse is- man, do I have a city boy! "Mom, I didn't even have to flush. It just went down a big hole!"

Seneca is officially walking! Gma Delores is so proud that she took her first real steps in Paragonah. She is getting braver all the time and her favorite place to walk is on the grass in bare feet. She is such a busy little thing, into everything she could find and didn't want to hold still... ever. She's developing a little mind of her own and it's interesting to see a little stubborn creep in with her sweet.

Beckham loved being loved. His chub was kissed and squished by everyone. Gma didn't like it when I put him down... does she really think that I carry that kid around all day?! She'd go rescue him as soon as I was out of sight. He was great on this trip, a very good traveller and adaptive to the craziness around him. He has turned into such a sweet pleasant little guy.

Denten spent as much time in the mountains as possible, not wanting to return to normal life any sooner than necessary. He caught his limit in fish each day and is so at home in Horse Valley it's a little scary, well, to me who needs a few more modern conveniences than the hills offer. We both had a great time. I felt like I could breathe deeply and have fresh air filling my lungs. The evenings were so pleasant, no one wanted to go inside. There is definitely something to be said about cool summer nights in a small town.

The 4th of July Celebration was great, races for all ages (Coop won the three-year old race!), watermelon- eating contest, egg and water balloon toss, three-legged races... it was really fun to hang out all afternoon with everyone. We got to meet Lexie, Drew's current girlie and she and cooper bonded instantly. I had some great conversations with my mother-in-law, who, I really enjoy. It's wonderful that we can have different opinions and ways of looking at things and still be able to talk and enjoy each other.

All in all, a great get-a-way. The mounds of laundry are awaiting and I'm in no hurry. Photos to come eventually.