Slip, Slipping Away

Oh my gosh, a whole week and not one post. I'd like to say I'm going to make up for lost time and post a nice long recap of my vacation, but somehow I don't see it happening right now. We're officially more than half way through our stay. I'm starting to feel my time here slipping away. Clark flies back in on Friday, then we have to decide when we'll be hitting the road back to Albuquerque. We're planning to stop in Flagstaff, or possibly Sedona for a day or two for some pool time (I mean, what's a vacation without pool time). I still have to find some time for my sweet friend Suz, and my other sweet friend Kelli, not to mention a movie date with my sisters, lunch with my dad, and I think I will definitely need to work in a chicken fried steak at the Market Grill at some point. Oh! And ice cream at Grandee's! Can't forget that! I think I need to schedule. Make a list, something.

Beck and I had a nice morning in St. George Friday. Awesome breakfast at Bear Paw, and then some poking around the two little antique/consignment stores on Main Street, followed by the bookstore, and TJ Maxx. A well-rounded trip. Saturday we went up to 'the cabin'. I keep feeling like the cabin needs a better, more descriptive name, but haven't come up with one yet. The cabin belongs to Beck's inlaws, Eric's parents. It's located up on the mountain in a little cabin community called Panguitch Lake, about an hour's drive from Cedar. It is one of the cooler places I know of. It's large enough to accomodate a pretty good crowd of folks, but small enough to feel, well, cabiny (is that a word? well, it's my word now). It always feels just rustic enough, and at the same time very comfortable for those of us who don't exactly relish roughing it. For example, the walls are log, and most of the floors are wood, but there is a lovely plush green carpet covering the huge family room on the main floor. Perfect for sitting in front of the fire and playing old maid with the kids. It has plumbing (very important), 2 bathrooms, one with a shower and a tub. The kitchen is well-stocked with pots and pans, dishes, and such, so eating is always one of the big activities of the day. I love that the extra special cast iron dutch oven actually lives at the cabin, so if you want the fantastic dutch oven potatoes my sister makes, you have to go to the cabin to get them. We were anticipating a pretty decent crowd, usually everyone shows up at one point or another when the cabin is open, but it ended up just being Beck's fam (her, Eric, Janzen, and Super-Sophie), my fam (me, Madeline, and Zach), and our friends Paul and Jen. I've been there when the whole wonderful mob of friends shows up,and it's always a blast, but I must say it was really relaxing to have a small crowd this time. I actually got to sleep in a bed, which was very nice. We had a lovely time up there. I took many pics which I'll try to get into a digital form at some point. (NEED to get that digital camera!!)

I'm enjoying my time staying in my mom's house. I was a little worried at first, but no one seems too stressed out. Katy and I seem to be moving into a more mature and closer relationship, I think. She's writing a fantastic fairy story which I'm trying to get her to post online. She really has some talent, and I'm proud of her for having the discipline to harness her creativity and do something with it. Mom and dad continue to be a mystery to me, but that's nothing new. It'll be nice to sit down with my dad one on one for lunch today. He seems depressed to me, and I hope we get a chance to talk about something beyond small talk. He may even be coming to Albuquerque for business some time this summer which would be really cool. I'd like him to see my new town.

OK, time for a shower, can't be stinky for my daddy-daughter lunch date.