Camping in the Blues part 2

After 2 days of camping we all felt gross and decided it was time for a shower.  Two days is the max I can take.  Darren and Mark opted for the quickest method- dumping ice cold water from the river on themselves.  While I took the more sophisticated approach.  I boiled some water over the fire and took a nice warm outdoor shower.  Ahhh, it felt so good!  My kids ended up showering and loved it too.

I you ever want to entertain your kids for months on end- just get a puppy!  They are living breathing toys.  If you go camping you don't even have to worry about potty training them for a couple days! It ALMOST makes up for the hours and hours of potty training  you will spend every day that you aren't camping.

We did this really fun easy 2 mile hike to this look out that everyone enjoyed.  It was beautiful and the kids loved it.

Mark, Darren and me.  I love these guys.

All the kids got into this big flexing contest.  Gabe kept flexing with his arms down by his sides.  This is a picture of Gabe flexing for us all.  It was so cute.

Did I mention one of my favorite things about camping is no electronics?  I love to take mind games for the kids.  They keep them entertained. 

This is a fun game puzzle called Kanoodle.  It's my favorite. Maybe because I can't do the Rubiks Cube.  We took turns doing the puzzles and timing each other to see who could do it the fastest. 

I went to a lot of work before-hand preparing food so it would minimize the work once there.  I went to Pinterest for cooking recipes.  Some were great and some were a flop.  But it didn't matter because everything tastes good when your camping!

Jared and Gabe had the best time riding their bikes round and round this road.  We were at the very end so we didn't have to worry about cars- it was perfect.

Ellie and Emma slept in their own little "room" in Marks tent.  They stayed up late and slept in late.  They would disappear in the tent for hours to visit, read, play games,  and just enjoy being together.  Ellie is in this sleeping bag but refused to let me take her picture one morning about 11. 

Kyle picked some wild flowers for me and set them on the table.  Kyle is such a sweet, sensitive kid.  I love him so much.  He is so thoughtful.

You know how when you buy a kid a toy, sometimes they play with the box more than the toy?  Well that's how this trailer was that Mark brought full of 4 wheelers and bikes.  I think Gabe and Derek and Jared played house on this trailer more than they went 4 wheeling.  They would run up and down that ramp over and over again.  Sometimes it's the simple things in life, like a trailer ramp.  Or throwing rocks into a river.  Sometimes it's nice to take a step back and lets the kids get dirty and just be kids.