Camping!

In August we took a little family camping trip to Honeyman State Park.  David had been there growing up, but the kids and I had never been.

We (just Dave and I) had a trip planned to Mexico in August for our ten year wedding anniversary, and the closer we got to it, the more I felt guilty for leaving the kids behind...so in late July, I decided it would be a great idea to have a family camping trip on the books for right after Dave and I returned, that way I knew tons of great Family Time was right around the corner and would in turn feel less guilty for leaving them behind while we frolicked for six days in Mexico. (It did work. We had a blast. Pics to come at some point.)

 

So, this trip was borne of guilt.

 

But God blessed it anyways =)

 

It seemed like every campground I looked at was booked solid. (That's what you get when you wait until about three weeks from when you want to rent a site. In the middle of summer. In Oregon.) I just went down the Oregon State Parks website alphabetically...hoping some place still had sites available for the few days we could make it work.

Lo and behold, Honeyman had a few tent sites left to reserve! Hallelujah!

 

We ended up LOVING the site we had. It was across from the bathrooms, but not right next door. It backed up into a large forest space, complete with trails that took you exploring a bit, and then looped you right back to our spot...a 4 year olds dream!

 



 

This was also Abbey and Luke's first time tent camping. We'd done cabin camping before, and yurt camping, but hadn't been brave enough to do tents yet.

Pre-kids, Dave and I used to tent camp all the time...but I'd always been nervous about the lack of walls in a tent and the affect it could have on sleeping babies/toddlers.

The kids both did awesome and were great sports about everything, the entire time. They were definitely ready, which thrills me! Hooray for a future with many, many family bonding trips without great expense!



 

The sand toys we brought also worked great for dirt!

 

 

 

This picture below makes me smile for several reasons. One is because the tent on the right is the one Dave and I registered and got for our wedding, when it was just the two of us planning camping adventures. The tent on the left is the one we purchased right before this trip, during our tenth year of marriage.  I love how our Tenting Needs have changed in the last decade =).

 

Luke had told us before we left that he wanted to sleep in the little tent by himself. We knew he'd totally change his mind once we were there, but packing up the tent and setting it up and letting him realize this all himself was far easier than us trying to convince him that we knew better.

We ended up using it a lot as a dressing/catch-all tent, which came in really handy!

 

 

Our little campers =)

 

 

 

S'Mores...yummmmm...

 

 

 

Our first night there we played a few rounds of Go Fish...

And then after the sun went down, we put these two cuties to bed in the tent, and we hung out (right next to the tent) by the fire and played cards ourselves =) I had thought the kids would have trouble falling asleep being able to hear us chatting, but they crashed without any trouble!

 

 

 

It was a little chilly when we woke up the next morning, so Daddy got a fire going right away...

 

 

 

Luke exploring the woods behind our site...

 

 

 

We then went and climbed the sand dunes!

 

(that's Luke at the top left and Abbey on her way up!)

And played in the lake!

 

We had incredible weather the whole time we were there. Warm and sunny all day long, with just a chill in the evenings and early mornings (all the better for cuddling =) )

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ohmyword I love this kid.

 

 

We came back in the late afternoon and it was time to hit the showers...

 

And we stayed clean for almost ten whole minutes!!

 

 

 

We went and played at the playground...

We played cards again that night, made S'Mores, and cuddled by the fire. We all slept great both nights, which was such a blessing.

The next morning, David got up before us and got the fire going, and when I heard the twins starting to wake up, I invited them into cuddle with me...

 

...which may have been my favorite part of the whole camping trip.

Dave taught both kids how to be very careful near the fire...

 

We had such a great time, and David and I were both thrilled with how the kids entertained themselves (and each other) easily around the campsite. We all went 48+ hours without any electronics, and no one in our family missed them. Good to know.

The kids rode their scooters...

 

...and explored and read books and colored in coloring books and played in the dirt and went on adventures and just all around did awesome =).

 

Our last morning there, we went back to the lake and rented a pedal boat!

We had to wait for a bit, so these two goons screwed around for a bit...

 

...and I joined 'em....

 

And then it was boat time!

 

 

 

(yes, Luke insisted on leaning over the edge)

The kids each took turns steering the boat.

They were terrible at it.

 

But they had fun!

 

And before we knew it, it was time to break camp and head back home...

 

...and back to electronics...