Oh how wrong I was

How could I forget so quickly? Quarantine with four children is a maelstrom of wants and needs. Now I seem to be sick so I have time in bed to myself to look back fondly on better times - like Labor Day weekend!

All impromptu, we invited ourselves to my uncle's cabin and drove up Thursday evening and then adventured around! It was idyllic and wonderful and I hope we can go back soon. 

Eric successfully transported the canoe to a lake

Here is the lake.

We discovered two backgammon boards and some fierce games were had!

We went for a hike, excuse me, a bear hunt, and had to go through some tall tall grass.

Here we all are in the canoe on a different day! Everyone had good boat safety sense, thank goodness. Edie lost her gatorade cap in the water - disaster! - but it floated, so we turned the canoe around and a kind older brother snagged it for her. Phew!

The fire pit was a big hit. Oscar made his own tiny fire pit on the side. Marshmallows were roasted. Ash was used to paint faces, hands, legs, rocks.

The neighbor's cat came to visit often. We named him Marshmallow, naturally. He adored the children and they adored him!

We remembered to bring a baby gate - expert parenting move! - which we did not need after all. But we forgot to bring any baby toys. Whoops! Fortunately, Winston's cat food cans and a bucket were all Ben needed to be so satisfied. He liked the cat toys, too! I know this photo is blurry, I really like Ben's expression though.

And, bonus, here's a short talk I gave about seeds for St. John's Alumni week. Woo! I haven't watched it myself of course, far too embarrassing, but I bet it's pretty good.

If I truly stay in bed all day, there may be more to report from Eric's phone...