the great outdoors

so the last time we went camping was 6 years ago.this little precious angel was up all night and even though we put our tent far away from my sisters family, the woods are not sound proof and i'm sure we kept the whole forest up.

then, on day 2, it started raining.

and never stopped.

so we did what any logical person would do and packed up all our stuff and headed for our parents house. i'm sure they were thrilled to see our filthy faces.
after all, we brought a package of donuts with us.

and then after ella, there was bennett. then there was mason. and there was very little sleep mixed in there. so while camping occasionally came up as a thrilling adventure for our family, we always opted instead for our own beds and stay-at-home sanity.

but now that insanity has become the new norm we decided it was TIME!

time to head out and enjoy God's beautiful creation. (especially before this next little one comes and i never leave the house again.)

so we ventured to the mountains and had a fantastic time.

we saw the giant sequoias that have been firmly rooted for thousands of years. and yes, i'm certain these were far more fascinating to anthony and i than our children. they got excited about the ones you could walk inside and would say, "wow, cool..." but were way more interested in having a snack and hopefully seeing a moose. (which of course we did not.) but i must just say about these trees... God is pretty fantastic. the details of his creation are simply amazing.
back at camp the kids kept busy making a "wood store" and for the life of me i can't figure out why they were surprised i wouldn't give them actual dollar bills for their wood. surely they know how cheap i am by now. we played tarzancaused serious anxiety in dear old mommy
and enjoyed all kinds of big and little creations.
there was some creek playing, nature walks, bear fear and most of all... the joy of dirt. the clothes have come clean but the memories will last forever.