The Great Outdoors

Last weekend we went camping in Greenbrier State Park located in Maryland.

The drive there out Interstate 70 was so pretty. The clouds were like big cotton balls.

We unpacked when we got to our campsite. The car was stuffed to say the least. This picture was taken after probably 5 bags had already been taken out.  Not to mention the stuff me and the kids had to hold on our laps and at our feet the whole drive.

We set up our sweet new tent. You can't see the whole thing from this angle, but it is a three room tent. We were living the lap of luxury. Well, if you count sleeping on the ground and walking a mile to the bathroom the lap of luxury.  But, the chirping birds and outdoor living totally makes up for that.

Eddie found a centipede. At least we called it a centipede. Unfortunately, the next day we found "Centi" stiff as a board wrapped in a little ball. Hope we didn't kill him with our human germs.

We swam in Greenbrier Lake. It was fun swimming with the fish, until the announcer came over the intercom and said we all must exit the lake for an hour due to "unsanitary conditions." Ick. I think we all know what some kid did in the lake. Yes, I treated myself to a shower that night.

Later, we went hiking on the trail around the lake. Eddie put his feet in the part we weren't supposed to, but I liked the picture (although too dark), so I let him.

Happy Father's Day weekend to Peirce! He got his bacon and eggs on the camp stove for breakfast.

 One part of the lake has a damn. The hill was so massive that we all stared at it for a while. Eddie wanted to go down to the bottom. I thought....uh....does he know he has to come back UP?  But, we did it and survived.  

 It was hard getting up. Peirce staggered the start times according to age. But, I hung back since I'm the photographer.

But, then we got up and noticed we had totally missed this sign telling us we should never had done that.  Oops. 

We had a fun time though and would love to do a longer trip next time. As a kid, I would go to Shenandoah National Park for a week during the summer. Now I understand why. You load up your whole car, set up your tent and make your campsite cozy. It is hard to take it all down and pack up after only a weekend.  We hadn't been camping since I was seven months pregnant with Eddie in my belly. Hopefully, we are on our way to this type of getaway more often!