Camping Trip 2008

Once again, we had a great time building memories with our church family. What fun we have just being together. I'm so grateful our kiddos get to grow up making such fun memories with their church friends. I must admit by the time Wednesday rolls around, I am quite ready to take a shower without any Daddy long leg sightings. Unfortunately, we did see a bit of rain each day. Thankfully the storms were isolated and resolved over the course of an hour or 2...nothing like last year's 8 hour deluge! Early Wednesday morning (4am!) we were rudely awakened by a pocket of thunder storms and heavy rain for several hours...the Lord was kind and saved that for the final day!! Thankfully, all but one child slept through the boomers and heavy rainfall. As I lay awake praying for God to keep all the campers dry and safe,with my handy flashlight I could see water beading up on the inside roof of the tent...this would have soaked us if we had disturbed the tent. How thankful I was for sleeping children, and God's timing in sending the storm away...just in time to wake up and pack up! All in all it is well worth all the effort and planning :) Enjoy the pictures!!
MamaB

Due to the potential for furry visitors (bears!) we had to keep most of our belongings in the van except when we were right there at our site'... our addition of clear tote bins helped keep us a bit saner this year :)

P and C were a huge help to Daddy as they got our 'home away from home' set up~

While we were busy unpacking and 'setting up camp' the 4 littles were busy exploring...or should I say slipping into this lovely creek( don't worry it was shallow where they were ) in pursuit of tadpoles and fish.... 3 of the 4 somehow managed to slip in...so within the first 2 hours, we were down 3 outfits! We swiftly changed the rule to no kids by the water without Daddy or Mommy :)

This tent sleeps all 8 of us comfortably (that is a relative word when compared with the comforts of home!!) We set up 3 queen sized air mattresses and 2 single sleep mats for the big boys.

What a handsome fella' ...neon yellow is definitely his color!! Shortly after setting up, a storm blew in and we were all remembering the rains of last year. Thankfully, most of us were a bit more prepared and had our tarps up before the rains hit!!

After the worst of the storm passed, everyone began gathering in the field with umbrellas and cameras in hand...not wanting to miss the action, I ventured out and this is what I saw!!

We decided to share our big meals (breakfast and dinner) with the Kach family who were just across the dirt road from us...this worked out great and was a real energy/time saver!! Especially since they were the envy of all with their spiffy 'tailgate' grill...very practical and it cooked much more food than our little Coleman stove could ever handle!

Monday: Getting there is half the fun...some of the youth rode in style to Hawk falls...don't worry they were sitting down once the truck was moving :)

The trek to Hawk Falls. Here Daddy is helping Mercy down the stone ledge...

Beautiful scenery!!

Odesco gets a pep talk from Daddy....will he do it??

1-2-3 JUMP!! Odesco braves the cold water below with Daddy's help!! They are jumping off the lower falls...NOT the ones a few pictures above!

G and J Kach jumping in together~

Mercy gets in on the action too!

L surprised us with his bravery...I think he was trying to keep up with his older friends :) C jumped a few times but I didn't time the picture right and P just sat and watched...not his cup of tea!

That's Daddy leaping from the high falls... I think I have a few more gray hairs after out Hawk Falls Fun...it's always a little nerve wracking for the moms in the group!!

Some people thought our over-loaded clothes line was a bit amusing after only one day of camping!

Miss Britt played a practical joke on a friend... she has been affectionately named "Monkey Girl" by her mom and now I know why!!

G with some hand picked treasures :)

Sweet friends with their own bounty!! These 2 were busy for quite a while gathering this harvest of yummy blueberries~

This is what we saw in the field below our campsite' ... it's such fun to see all the kids together like this.

Monday nite': The youth hanging out playing a game of "Killer Uno"

Mercy was thrilled to be invited for s'mores at her friend, "lizzie-boo's"campfire- another little friend joined in the fun too!!

At another campfire, Jenkins crashed after a hard day of play.We all laughed because he was sitting between an accountant and an engineer...could it have been the stimulating conversation?!?

Another one bites the dust!

Wide Awake: a smiley Odesco roasts a marshmallow in his "Liberian squat stance"...

The girls enjoyed a late night card game by the lantern light :)

Tuesday morning: The Blueberry Brigade hard at work...they collected enough blueberries for Mrs. L to make blueberry pancakes :)!

'Styling girlies' on the way to our Boulder Field excursion.

Odesco venturing out....a few years ago when we visited here, some people just leaving warned us that they had seen several rattlesnakes sunning themselves before they slithered into their cool spots beneath the rocks...YUCK!

Daddy and his girls!

L and Odesco getting brave as they conquer the rocks on Boulder Field!

Back at our campsite L makes another creepy crawlie friend!

A few minutes later he discovered a 2nd slimy critter and was trying to get them to fight...silly boy!!

When you camp, you learn to improvise!! Now where did I put that bag of plastic cups??

Wagon rides down the gravel hill...quite the noisy excitement for this crew!

Who needs amusement parks?? Click on this picture to get a close up...the look on Jenkin's and Odesco's face is just priceless!!

RAIN,RAIN GO AWAY!!!...

After an afternoon storm, we all headed down to the open fields to watch the kids play kickball...soon the older youth, young men, and Dads also had a game going...I turned around the in the midst of the game to see this...I wondered what the girls were making a fuss about....

Then I saw "Princess Kenzie" holding court for all of her fawning admirers!! One of my favorite memories of every camping trip is how well the children mix...the older with the younger...the youth holding ball games for the little ones, the teens swinging with the toddlers... the toddlers loving on the babies...you get the idea- it really is precious to watch!

The Mac and Tormey ( only the Dads and their oldest sons were on this trip) families joined us for dinner on Tuesday. This was a special blessing because the Macs moved about an hour away and our kids don't get to spend time together on a regular basis. About 2 years ago, they introduced us to their good friends, the Tormeys who adopted 2 children from Acres of Hope, Liberia this past March. What an unexpected surprise it was to see both families cycling through the woods!!

Sweet friends...K and G...they are both wearing glow bracelets that looked so cool in the dark but my camera is not fancy enough to capture that!

Campfire fun--the final night...

You can't tell from this picture, but these neon glasses were blinking on and off and the kiddos got such a kick out of donning them~

Homeward Bound!!

Soon after our arrival home, Daddy wasted no time in airing out all the damp and musty sleeping bags, tarps,chairs, and tent before the rains visited us here! Thankfully, we got it all aired out and packed away just in time! And with M's help, all the laundry ( I lost count of the loads!) was washed and ready to be folded and put away before the day was over!!