The many names and faces of Daniel

As promised, here are pictures of Daniel. I know that's all you really want, so here you go. ;)

P.S. I am not a big fan of slide shows, so there is just about a bazzilion pictures. Sorry the post is so huge.

We have many different names for Daniel. First, and foremost, Daniel.

Aaron calls him Danny-boy (not my favorite- he is only a solid Daniel, no "ee" about it)This is The Daniel (his signature move- one arm up in the air)Stinky Face- though admittedly he is the opposite of stinky in this picture. But, seriously this kid farts all the time. It cracks us up. I really do call him Stinky Face by the way.Cutie Face.

Not a name here, but he has a volleyball. Pill Butt. Look at his shirt, need I say more? I know, he doesn't look like a Pill Butt, but trust me, he can be.His Indian name: Likes to be held

Buddy (this is the closest picture we have to him smiling) Handsome Boy.Cutie FaceSad Face. I know, what great parents we are- he is crying with his face in the floor and we grab a camera.

No name here- this is the "seriously mom?" face. I know it's June, but he will have grown out of it by Christmas.Cutie Face x2. He likes to put his hand up like that and it makes my heart melt. I know they are pretty much the same picture, but I couldn't decide which one was better.Boyfriend. These are definitely the two most important boys in my life.
Have I said Cutie Face?

A tale of two mountains

For those of you that do not know, I have the blessing of being the Young Men's president in our ward. One of the many perks of this responsibility is the opportunity to accompany the priests on their annual summer campout. This year we had decided to take on an ambitious backpacking trip to Granddaddy Lake, located in the Uinta mountains 50 miles from Heber City,Utah. I have never been on a true backpacking trip and thus had to accumulate all sorts of fun gear. Needless to say having to pack everything in and out on your own back makes camping a bit more difficult. Much to my satisfaction I used every piece of equipment that I purchased and added to my 50+ pound pack. I was prepared and ready to conquer the wilderness and embrace the unique personalities and antics of the 6 teenage boys that somebody deemed me worthy to be responsible for.
It was with this optimism that we embarked on our outing at 3:30 AM. Nine and a half hours later we spilled out of our two vehicles disregarded the rain we had driven through, stared down the thunderheads looming over the mountains, threw our packs over our shoulders and attacked the trail to Granddaddy Lake. Three hours later after about five miles of trudging through snow banks and mud and occasionally having to hunt down the trail, we found our camp and began to pitch our tents in the beginnings of a light snow/hailstorm. That was about the best the weather got during our Uinta experience.
For two nights and two days we toughed out the unpredictable, but always cold, weather of brief sun, snow, then hail, then overcast, and then a teaser of sun again.
We fished and caught some beautiful trout, but once many of us realized we had just donned our last dry article of clothing we threw in the towel and retreated to the comforts of the Ripplinger cabin in Pine Valley.
Despite the change in plans I still call the trip a success. The boys learned that they can weather some pretty rugged conditions and we also came to value some of the simpler comforts that we may have previously taken for granted. (Like a dry pair of socks) Below are some pictures from our trip. I think that you will be able to tell from our attire and the surroundings which are from the Uintas and which are from Pine Valley.

Excuses

I know I have not posted in eons, and I apologize. I don't know how all you women with children do anything. I have only one and feel like I've accomplished something if I have showered that day. The only reason I am blogging now is because I'm at work, and I happen to be having a pretty good night (I hope I'm not jinxing myself). But I do promise to post something with pictures soon (withing the year- ;)).

Daniel is doing wonderful- he is such a chunk. He's almost already doubled his birth weight and he's only 2 1/2 months old. What can I say? He's like his mom- he lives to eat. Ü He doesn't sleep much during the day (like 30 min stretches here and there), which is also why I haven't posted and why I am posting at 2 in the morning. I was talking to a friend whose baby slept for two hour naps consistently during the day and I just giggled in that hysterical kind of way because I can't even imagine how beautiful that would be. BUT (and that's a big but) Daniel does sleep pretty well at night- about a 5-6h stretch and then goes back down right after, which is fabulous because if he did what he does during the day I would probably cry all the time.

Aaron is amazing. I don't know how I got so lucky to marry that man. He is a great dad. People at work always ask if I worry when I'm not there with the baby. I truly don't worry at all because I know Aaron's got it covered (don't get me wrong- I miss Daniel incredibly, but I know he's in good hands). In fact, I sometimes don't wake up at night when Daniel is crying because it's Aaron's "turn" and I know he will wake up. I do wake up if I know Aaron is not going to (I'm not the worst mom ever).

K I have to go work now. I promise pictures are coming.