Family Camping Weekend: Let the Good Times Roll!

The Third Annual "Camping with Auntie and Uncle" weekend is officially in the books...and after the camp gear is almost all back in it's proper place and the laundry is almost all free of campfire smell, I can't help but think, "Wow, camping is so much fun and soo much work!" (I am determined one of these years we will actually pack up the campsite in under two hours!)

Isabelle and Daniel (our incredible 7-year-old niece and 5-year-old nephew) look forward to this weekend all year long and I do, too. This summer's trip had two new additions to make it extra noteworthy.

First, Bereket came along! It was her first camping experience and she is one happy camper! Whether we were roasting marshmallows or splashing in the creek, she was determined not to miss a second of the action!

Secondly, I made a last-minute, summer splurge purchase: a Coleman Instant Tent, promising set up and take down in one minute flat! The one minute thing was a little too good to be true, but we got the tent up and everyone inside just in time for an all-night rain! I am happy to report the tent was almost waterproof and the kids seemed to find the new tent just as entertaining as the old one.

The weather improved greatly Saturday morning and we were in for a weekend of fun in the sun. When my sister picked the kids up this afternoon, she asked what their favorite part of camping was. Isabelle and Daniel both agreed they had two favorites:

In first place, Auntie's amazing campfire pancakes: they were even better than last year!

And coming in at a close second, our afternoon at the beach!

My favorite part of the trip was this morning when I thanked Daniel for being Auntie's amazing hiking buddy. He responded, "Auntie, I'm Bereket's buddy first!"  I hope these little cousins will always be the best of friends and that many more camping adventures are in our future.  But first, we need to recover from this one!

My very tired happy camper.