This weekend we flew up to Seattle to visit with my sister and her husband and my very favorite niece. I was worried about the sinuses, but both flights were blessedly free of turbulence or other sinus-awakening maneuvers, so all went far better than expected.

We had a very lovely visit, although I am a horrible auntie and did not take a single picture (in my defense, neither did my little sister, even though we both own, and carry around constantly, perfectly functional cameras). My sister picked us up at the airport Friday night, and we chattered non-stop on the drive back to their house. She and her husband and Richard and I tiptoed into the house so as not to wake the niece and then camped out downstairs in the family room to watch a little bit of the Olympics (men’s diving and track) and do a few more hours of chatting, before the yawning became too distracted to talk anymore.

We had nothing particular planned for the weekend except just spending time with the niece and her parents. We played lots of board games. We tromped around outside and oohed and aahed over their rather impressive vegetable garden (which puts our sad little tomato jungle to shame). We finally got to meet their chickens, since we’ve been hearing about them (and seeing periodic pictoral updates) ever since they got them as tiny little bits of peeping fluff. We went miniature golfing (and I proudly took last place because yes, I really am the worst miniature golfer ever). My little sister gave my niece and I henna tattoos. In the mornings we ate pancakes, and homemade croissants filled with chocolate or Nutela. Saturday evening we ate dinner outside on their back deck, with the chickens clucking aimlessly around the lawn, and a tiny little wild rabbit nibbling its way through the grass, and after the niece had been put to bed, we adults stayed up for another few hours, talking and laughing and working our way through an entire ice cream pie.

I wish we could do this more often. It’s so hard, to only get to see my little niece twice a year, if that. My little sister and I chat on IM and there are emails and the occasional phone conversation, but those things are all a poor replacement for being right there, in the same room, sitting around a table playing games; eating outside with chickens and rabbits and trees and the clear blue sky.