Camping.....

As our family enjoys the outdoors, we decided it would be fun to go on a little family camping trip this month. It won't be long before we get back into the swing of things such as school and routines....all that good stuff. While living in New England we often went camping. During those camping days, it was just Noah and Nate.....well, now there are 3 more little kiddos to add to the "experience." 

We went to Jellystone Park....yes, the Yogi Bear campground. I remember watching Yogi as a kid and now our crew like Yogi, and a couple of them were excited to meet him.  Jellystone was a little less rustic than where we had camped in the past....but I guess it was a nice way to ease back into the whole camping thing. There were actually only 5 or so campsites for tents, the rest were RV hookups. I am pretty sure that we were the only tent campers there.

Our site was nestled in the woods which was nice and it was a short walk to the main campground area. There was a giant jumping pillow where we spent quite a bit of time. They also had a couple of  swimming pools, mini golf and a little train ride. The kids were able to ride their bikes alot...because we went from Thurs. to Sat.,  it didn't get busy until we were leaving. 

Hope you enjoy the photos of our first of hopefully many future big family camping trips. I'll be honest it was ALOT of work....but we had a great time together and made some special memories. 

Everyone had to pitch in to help set up camp. We had alot of eager little workers to get the tent up. 

As Noah gets older I am often thankful for his muscle. He is becoming one strong dude which helps leave all of the lifting and carrying stuff to he and Daddy.  Noah did remember to bring along his sense of humor....of course. 

This little guy is such a joy. But I will say having a full fledged crawler on our camping trip was probably our biggest challenge. Our campsite ground where we spent most of our time was all dirt, so it made it tricky to give him space to stretch his energetic legs without becoming a dirt ball.

These photos of Noah need no introduction. Nate sure does love his big brother and even puts up with all of his antics...well, most of the time.

This little contraption involved water, so our kids were all over it.

This is the now infamous jumping pillow....literally, a giant pillow that you could jump on.  

Jared and the kids had an absolute blast on this...definitely one of the highlights of our trip.  Believe it or not I even jumped on it for a while. Thankfully Jared didn't think to grab my camera and snap some shots of me doing some fancy moves...whew!

They loved the jumping, but I think they love rolling off of it just as much.

Hair...I know, that's all I see when I look at this photo.

I love it when Nate gets excited....his excitement is infectious.

This little guy enjoyed watching the big kids jump, and he always kept me company.

You didn't think that Jared would pass on all this fun did you? This is my favorite shot of our whole trip. It will be hanging on my wall soon. 

We had never been to a park that had a swimming pool before, we have only camped on or near a lake, but the pools were nice and the kids loved swimming. It was nice to have it all to ourselves.

As you may guess I am extremely proud of the raw talent that my children posses.

There were benches handy to our campsite so we didn't have to make a makeshift clothesline. 

I always like to see what Lauren and Luke are up to. For the most part they play really well together and are often engaged in some kind of pretend play. When I overhear their conversations sometimes they have me cracking up.  

Luke calls this bike, his 3rd birthday gift from Mi Mi and Pap Pap, his motorcycle.

Lauren's telling Luke a story....

We were very thankful for the beautiful weather.  The days were pleasant, lots of warmth and sunshine but not too hot. The evenings were rather chilly, around 57 one night, so we made sure to bundle everyone up. It was fairly easy to keep warm...lots of layers!

Jared and I agree on a camping favorite....and at the top of both of our lists is camp coffee!

He brought his french press that we got him for his birthday, and I have to say it was some good stuff. Jared makes our coffee strong, so we had lots of energy for the day after a couple of cups.  We've had this black kettle from our early years of camping. We would even use it with our camping stove while living in New England when we would lose our electric...Jared always found a way for us to have our morning coffee.  

Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch...the breakfast of Champions. This used to be my favorite cereal as a kid, so I thought that it was of great importance to pass this legacy onto our children.

Although Noah and Lauren do love coffee, we try to avert their addiction to hot cocoa instead. Lauren still calls it her coffee though. 

If you were wondering what that bruise like mark is on Nate's face, don't worry, he just sucked a cup onto his face for too long. Noah had a purple chin from doing the same thing not too long ago. I don't understand why my kids do this....drives me crazy. 

Coon tracks.

Sweet baby boy in the mornin'.  

Breakfast was simple but yummy. Egg and cheese sandwiches for a few of us, and cereal, fruit and yogurt for the others. 

Nate was quite the explorer on our trip. As he matures, he is much more brave than he used to be. That could possibly be due to the fact that he is a member of the "Dangerous Boys Club."

Riding around camp was fun for them. Lots of little trails they could ride on.

I was trying to take some candid shots of Noah, but as soon as he sees my camera, he obviously just can't help himself.

Nap/Rest time was especially a relaxing time for Jared and I. The baby slept like a log for a couple of hours out in the fresh air. We all just kind of chilled out around the camp after lunch. It was wonderful to constantly be outside.

The Budding Artist....

I know someone else who does this with his tongue when he is concentrating.....so neat to see some of Noah's traits in Luke. 

So what did Daddy do while we all rested? Smoked his pipe and read a book of course.

Mini golf was a big hit. Again we were the only ones. It was perfect for our kiddos. 

Ok....this next part of our camping trip was a bit sad..but sweet. Lauren and Luke really wanted to meet Yogi and Boo Boo. Nate was PETRIFIED of them. He saw Boo Boo come out of the little cabin and ran and hid behind Jared. Nate always seems to have some types of little phobias, they come and go. Well, apparently at the present time, he is afraid of people in large bear costumes.

Lauren and Luke were so cute and went to Boo Boo with open arms. It was so funny to watch Lauren. She kept hugging him and dancing with him.

Nate was a wreck, but he recovered as soon as Boo Boo went back into his cabin...poor guy!

The face of a true camper....layers of dirt he worked hard to acquire.

This was how Noah felt about the little train ride we were going on. (It was a lawn mower in disguise.)  A little too slow paced for this guy.

I have a similar shot of when Noah was 3 years old watching his Daddy light the fire.

Nate was eager to cook for us over the fire. He recently had his very first hot dog ever this summer. He even ate a marshmallow. I know this may not seem like a big deal to most, but as he gets older his sensory issues in his mouth seem to be getting easier for him. He is able to enjoy more textures of food now which is nice. 

Again...who does this remind you of?

I love these people.

I tried to get a good shot of our sleeping arrangement in the tent, but it was tricky with the lens that I had. All 7 of us were crammed in there.....it was actually quite cozy, especially on those cold nights. Adam even slept through the night, which he never does at home. 

It's nice to have a fellow photographer in the family. Just realizing now that I have yet to put his photos on our computer. There may just be a photo of me after all...as proof that I was actually on this camping trip.

Luke enjoying some toast Saturday morning before we started the feat of packing up camp.

It didn't feel quite right going camping without swimming in a lake. So after we packed up we drove a couple of miles down the road and enjoyed a few more hours of the outdoors. 

Nate couldn't resist this opportunity....he so enjoys dirt/mud/sand. This is a time that I don't mind it at all....a quick rinse in the water and it's gone.

Look closely at Luke's face in this photo....he was so scared that a shark was going to eat him. He was so excited to be at the lake, and just as he started wading into the water, he got nervous about sharks. It took alot of convincing that there were indeed no sharks in this water.

Adam loves the water. He is into splashing....which makes for a soggy mama after his bath time. 

I  enjoy taking group photos of our kiddos for the simple fact of capturing where they are at right now.  I love looking back to the different seasons of life and how they have grown through the months and years. 

We had a great time and hope to take many more camping trips in the future. Hope you enjoyed the photos of our crew as much as I enjoyed taking them.