Labor Day Camping

We've broken out the camper again and took it for another whirl.  Labor Day weekend was our first go round with Abi.  She has never camped before, so this was her initiation to the whole camping fun. (well, we hoped she would have fun because we sure do.)  In the end she admitted to enjoying it (although she did say that pretty much anything that didn't involve studying was fun to her, but we'll just take that as she enjoyed it.)

Of course there was lots of eating, sitting by the campfire cooking smores, making friends in the campground, walking the trails, playing football & soccer, and just plain relaxing.

It's a tradition to rent a movie that the kids haven't seen for a movie night while camping.  We'll pile in the camper around 9:30 or so afer exhausting all fun for the day outside and curl up to watch a movie & wind down.  This trip it was Soul Surfer & Hoodwinked 2.  Both were a hit with the kids.  Abi liked watching the movies, but she couldn't understand all that was being said.  She was a good sport about it though.

Caleb & Micah are into card games now, so we had to play a few rounds of Spades with them.

We've been teasing Abi about making her muscles strong, so her & Micah had to test the waters with some arm wrestling.  I believe Abi beat him, but I honestly can't remember for sure.

Papa, MeeMaw & Max (their exchange student from Germay) came out to join us for an afternoon & dinner.  We went for a semi-long walk & enjoyed some spaghetti and snickers ice cream bars for dessert.  (the snickers hit the spot for sure)

We tried our hand at fishing.  But the kids weren't as patient this time around.  They may have lasted all of 15 minutes fishing, and then ran for the playground. 

We found the perfect climbing tree.  Everyone had to give it a try.  Abi had another first--she'd never climbed a tree before, so she was eager to give it a whirl (well, eager climbing up, but not so much when trying to get down).

Now that the weather is getting a little cool, I start thinking how nice it would be to be relaxing by a campfire, reading a good book.  I've come a long ways in the 14 years we've been married.  Although I was always game for going camping, I now truely enjoy it & love that all our kids do too.  Hopefully we'll keep that tradition going.