Family Camping

 Before Thanksgiving, our family joined both my sister's and my brother's families on a 3-night camping trip to Huntsville. This was our family's second camping adventure, so we came a little better prepared this year. We invested in a new, larger tent and purchased head lamps for each member of our family. Our time together was full of relaxation-- chatting around the campfire, playing games, hiking, eating yummy food, exploring in nature, playing sports... what a wonderful trip!

The weather in the mornings was cool and crisp, but not too chilly, so it was ideal for all the cousins' many, many, many games of football.

Sometimes, the dads joined in the gameplay too!

Abby, Ben, and Adley tried an occasional game of football but typically found other ways to entertain themselves. They sure got some good giggles in!

Of course, camping is not all play and no work. Each of the adult couples signed up for several meals to plan and provide food for. When it came time to prep the food, all of the adults chipped in. 

The guys did a great job of managing the fire during our stay.

Ian especially loved being in charge of getting our daily fire going. Jaden even stepped in one morning to help.

We all spent a significant time around the campfire-- staying warm, chatting, and playing games. The kids' favorite by-the-campfire activities were writing silly stories and playing Careers.

But naturally, the BEST part about having a campfire is making s'mores!

Other daytime activities included fishing...

gymnastics (when the fishing got slow...),

watching out for alligators (yikes!),

playing games,

hanging out by the river,

doing crafts,

enjoying hot chocolate with whipped cream (or sometimes just the whipped cream!),

and hiking. 

One evening, rain hit our campsite, so we drove a few minutes into the town of Huntsville to see a movie. Staying dry inside and giggling at the movie was a perfect way to spend our time!

Since we were camping over a Sunday, we started Sunday morning with a time of worship. What a beautiful place to praise our Savior together! We read some Bible stories to the kids, listened to a mini-message by Jason,

sang some songs,

and acted out the story of the Good Samaritan. The kids loved this!

On our last morning, the 5 oldest cousins created a little hideout/fort for themselves by clearing out a pathway through the brush and creating a little alcove. They even devised a special password required for entrance. What a perfect place to hang out and play some games!

Another great year of camping in the books!