Some things do get better with age

Some things do get better with age

We just got back from our traditional family trip to the family cabin at Fish Lake.  We went every year when I was a kid; my mom went every year when she was a kid; and HER mother went every year when she was a kid.  Now we take our own kids every year, and we have a marvelous time with all my siblings and their kids hanging out at our cabin, playing games, hiking, going out on the boat, visiting the lodge, and even occasionally fishing (We are not that great of fishermen in our family, but Bryce does try hard to keep this tradition going.)  for an entire week.  This year sadly only three of my six children were able to come with us, and Kent was only with us for a few days.  However, now that my kids are the "old cousins,"  I realize how much of a vacation this has truly become for me.  Now it has always been fun to go to FishLake, but fun in an exhausting pack-all-the-food, pack- all-the-children's-needed-items, keep-track-of/entertain/respond to needs of-all-the-children-at-all- times sort of way.  This year, we traveled up with four of us rattling around in a 9-passenger Suburban. (Each kid got his/her own row.)  The kids all packed for themselves, and did a lot of the packing of the suburban.  The drive was pleasant.  Upon arriving, the kids all hauled their own stuff into the cabin and kept track of it.  I didn't have to (or at least I didn't) remind them to brush their teeth or take showers.  (Although I'm not sure Luke did either more than once during the entire week.)  And most of the time I had no idea where they were or what they were doing.  They were off with cousins, hiking, playing games, and having fun.  And I didn't have to worry.   I didn't tell anyone to go to bed; they just did it when they were tired.  (Some nights I'm not even sure where they slept.) I wasn't trying to squeeze naps/nursing between family activities, and I got to sleep all night every night.  (No cranky babies, not liking to sleep in an unfamiliar place.) I didn't have to (or at least I didn't) monitor anyone's eating habits or make sure that anyone got a plate of food.  I just got my own plate at each meal and ate.  I got to nap, read, and even scrapbook on my own schedule. I read this novel-300+pages in 3 days.  (Awesome-although I LOVE to read you would never know it, because my usual very-well-disciplined self melts into a puddle of unbridled reading any time I start a novel.  The house, the meals, and my sleep are all neglected until the novel is finished.  Thus I seldom, if ever, allow myself this luxury, and most of my reading is of magazine articles, blogs, facebook or other things that can be read in a relatively short amount of time.) I went for a run every morning in 50 degree weather.  I saw baby ducks and seagulls as I ran along the Lakeshore trail, and deer, squirrels, and even a family of bluejays as I ran along the road to the cabin.  FishLake was FINALLY a vacation.  So although I sometimes mourn the "loss of my babies" (kids just grow up too fast) Some things-vacations in particular-DO get better with age.

The Barlows 2001 (5 kids with #6 on the way)  Do you know how hard it was to keep track of everyone's shoes all week?!

If I thought 2001 was a bit exhausting keeping track of shoes, 2002 took the cake.  Luke cried the whole first year of his life.  And everytime I look at pics from our 2002 trip to FishLake (Luke age 6 months) all I can think is, "Oh yeah, I remember that trip; I was SO TIRED!"  (Here we are outside Rays' Roost-our cabin-ready for church at the lodge-try getting 6 kids ready for church in a small cabin-not to mention packing church clothes along with camping clothes-whew-I'm tired just looking at this pic.)

This year-2012 across the lake at a look out point.  Apparently some things do NOT get better with age.  (Family pictures for one.)  This is the ONLY family picture we got with everyone in it, and my daughter on her facebook page deemed it a "fail."  It was starting to rain.  The boys were less-than-cooperative, and I was falling off the fence.

Fish Lake 2012.  Me reading in bed-what a luxury!