The Cabin

I wanted to post the stuff from the rest of our trip to the cabin.

I am so thankful to have grandparents with a cabin. I feel so lucky. It is so refreshing to my soul to go up to the mountains, turn the TV off, and live. I think every time I go there, how mankind makes some nice things, but nothing compares in beauty to what God has made. I think just breathing in the rich pine scent is good for our bodies. I wish we could live there, but the city is where my husband can work... so reluctantly, thats where we live. But I LOVE being outside in nature!!

We started the trip with just my 2 sisters, our kids and my parents.

Ashlin brought her friend Vanessa, but then Vanessa was scared she was sick, so her parents and brother drove up to get her... but then she was feeling better, so they all stayed for a night! Lucky them got to do our annual "Fairy Search Night Walk". I love walking around at night, with the only faint lights coming from within the cabins we pass. So neat. And we sing silly songs as we walk. I am so grateful for those memories, priceless.

My sweet sister always brings glow in the dark bracelets for all the kids, then we arm them with flashlights, and are on our way...

Poor Lily, you will see above she is wearing some pink slippers... in my 1 hour haste packing the family, TOTALLY forgot shoes for Lily. She packed herself slippers. We called them her "hiking boots", and thats what she wore!

(After a few days of ONLY slippers, we did finally break down and buy her some tennis shoes up there!)

Then sunday my parents, Chrissy, and the Herrera's left, but DJ wanted to stay... so that left my sister Carrie and I with TWELVE children.... my 6, her 4, and Dj and Vanessa (Dallin and Ashlins best buddies who live on our street)

It was fun, but exhausting. And mostly because after we get the kids in bed LATE, my sister Carrie and I stay up even LATER because we finally can just sit by ourselves and talk. I love my sister. She is so neat. I am so thankful for her and her example to me. She is always doing kind things for others and such creative neat things for her kids. She is so selfless. She always listens to me talk and talk. And I always feel bad that I didn't listen to her as much as she listened to me... she is so humble, I always leave wanting to be more humble and a better listener.

My sister and I thought, if you have 12 kids, you've GOT to go out to eat one day... just to say you did... so we went on a fieldtrip to EL RANCHO for some mexican food... and the kids were actually so good!

Here's cute Lily entertaining Sophie at the restaraunt...

And here's cute Calvin and Logan, well, entertaining themselves!

THE MUSEUM:
So, every year the kids spend DAYS making a "museum" up there. They rake out a pathway and search for all kind of interesting artifacts/creatures to display for us!

This is the entrance, they made tickets, collected money and even had a ribbon cutting ceremony. SO cute, you can see Dallin in the back getting stuff ready!

Here is Dallin showing off some of the collectibles:

They had a HUGE slug, a wolf spider, a crawdad, some kind of wormy thing and more...

It was the cutest. They had a hands on section with pinecones, acorns, and leaves with insect eggs on them.

WAY TO GO kids, I was SO impressed with the museum this year. Dallin is lucky to have such a sweet cousin Lexi to explore with!

Now, sleeping arrangements with lots of people in a tiny cabin are fairly crazy. I shared my bed with some child every night, and a few others on the floor by my bed... but this was the CUTEST:

I took the bottom drawer out of this dresser

And put it on the night stand by my bed... what cute thing do you suppose is inside??




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This was seriously baby Sophie's bed ALL week!
I actually brought a portable crib, but it was so big, and she is so little, that I made a bed out of a drawer instead!

How PRECIOUS is she??!!!

I am so thankful my kids can have such similar memories as me and my childhood days at the cabin, playing games, going on walks, making crafts. This year they spent HOURS one night, all 11 of them COLORING NAPKINS!!??? Who would have thought? Seriously, with markers, they colored like 200 napkins between them all, and were laughing laughing...

Above are just a few of the napkins... they TRIED to keep them all (like my house needs more stuff)... instead I uploaded a few here so I could throw them away!! I love the one Ashlin made of her and I, with my trademark BIG HAIR!