Zion House

Back in July we got a call from Scott's Dad telling us they had the Zion house for a couple of days. Miraculously I wasn't scheduled to work any of the days so we packed our bags and headed down for 3 days of fun. While there, my actual camera didn't see much action, but my mental camera was clicking away creating memories. I wish I could share these mental images so you could see Brynn running around with the big girls (ages 5-10) thinking she was cool stuff. You would see them gathered around the table with their princess art kits Grandma Linda got them, TayLynn setting up a salon and braiding everyone's hair, all of them lined up on the bunk beds watching a movie, and Karissa leading Brynn around being her little mother. Brynn's face was constantly beaming (except when she bonked her head and got the biggest goose egg of her life, which is saying something for her). She loves her "friends" and they are all so good to watch out for her and include her in all they do. Mason's face would show up from time to time with the girls like when they were doing crafts and playing board games, but he could also be found lined up on the couch with all the 10 year old boys, each with their Nintendo DS. If you could really see this scene you might notice that Mason's "DS" is actually my 15 year old game boy that I pulled out for Mason before the trip. The proud look on Mason's face as he carried around his ziplock bag with his games inside showing off his new "DS" to all the big boys was priceless. I'm so grateful for his kind older cousins and uncles who made him feel so cool and included and never once pointed out that his gameboy was archaic. Mason and Brynn weren't the only ones who got plenty of cousin time. Miles enjoyed playing on the floor with his cousins Isla and C.J. Most of his time was spent working on his crawling skills. He loved to show off holding himself in plank position and mastered moving backwards, but didn't figure out how to crawl forward on his hands and knees until we got home. That just covers the time spent in the house. There was plenty of time spent outside exploring the "woods" and catching wildlife. Even more time was spent swimming at the pool. Mason loves being an independent swimmer and it was so nice for us not having to watch him like a hawk. Brynn, on the other hand, I couldn't get peeled off me because she was being so whiny and insecure in the water. She usually loves the water so this was super frustrating for me. As always, Miles was the peacemaker and gave up his spot in my arms and was happy splashing around in CJ's floaty. Some of the pictures my camera did actually take included Mason fearlessly riding on the zipline, Brynn going horseback riding, and Miles loving his time in the pool. It was a perfect couple of days. We love living so close to the Zion house so we can take these quick little trips to spend time with family. Thanks Mike and Linda.