Va Al Acampar...(or something like that)

In the tradition of our family trying new things, we took the boys camping this weekend. It was our annual trip to Crabtree Falls in Virginia. This was our 5th year (technically 6th year for the trip, but we missed in 2005 because Troy was studying for the P.E. exam). The trip was a great success, and the boys had a great time - which was a big relief considering how afraid of everything the twins are. Other than a few scrapes, an upset stomach, and tossing toys into the "river", our biggest challenge was making sure they didn't wiggle their way out of their sleeping bags at night (temperatures were in the 40s). Since I'm exhausted, I will get right to the photos.

A family of five requires a big tent. Compared to our old tent, this is a McMansion! It was so wonderful to 1) be able to spread out, fit all of our gear and have room to boot, and 2) be able to stand up - I could barely touch the top.

Papa helping Daniel pick out rocks to throw. The campground was a boy's paradise. There were mucho rocks, dirt, leaves, etc... for the boys to play with.

Another favorite passtime, especially for Luis, was petting baby Luke. He would say "Mama, Papa, quiero tocar" (I want to touch...). Then he would look at us like "Look, I am petting the baby and I am not afraid." Good job, Luis! But Luke is a human, not a dog.

We got to do a little bit of hiking, as much as little legs could take as least. We tried a new trail this year that had this cool suspended bridge. We didn't get very far before we passed a group of Boy Scouts warning us of a Yellow Jacket hive ahead. With three kids and baby in tow, it was better safe than sorry.

We also hiked a bit of the falls. This is a fairly strenuous hike, so we didn't hike up very far. I did have a "yay me!" moment - I carried Daniel (who was begging to take a nap) back down the trail. A couple of years ago, I could barely handle this hike, but thanks to my 5k training in the spring and chasing three boys since the summer, I am in much better shape now. Hooray!

This one was too cute to not put on the blog. Side note: A lens fell out of Daniel's glasses and we couldn't find it anywhere. They are being fixed.

The McNabbs (Andy, Bonnie and baby Luke)! We usually camp with the Turners (Brian, Kristin and their son Eliott) too, but they were unable to make it this year because Kristin is expecting baby #2 and is not feeling so great these days. I hope they have a girl - our mini-vacation is becoming overrun with testosterone.

What would camping be without S'mores? Roasting marshmallows was a hit with Samuel (the twins are too little). That might be why he woke up in the middle of the night crying. His stomach hurt so badly, most likely from the marshmallows, s'mores, and hot chocolate that we let him gorge on.

Note the glob of marshmallow. Priceless.

I made Luis eat his sitting down because he is always dropping his food.

It was a great, but tiring weekend. The boys were totally wired by the time we got home, but crashed hard when we put them to bed. We can't wait to go camping again, but I quickly realized we need to figure out how to go with less gear!