A Campin' We Will Go

So last weekend my niece Carolina celebrated her 14th birthday party with a weekend camping trip. We decided that the boys weren't quite ready for overnight camping quite yet, so we made a day trip out of it. We spent the usual 2 hours or so prepping for the excursion, making sure we had enough food, clothing and entertainment for these two busy boys. Once we got there, though, it was well worth the energy used in making the trip a reality! The boys were so excited to be out in nature. And, let me tell you, these boys were so dirty that when they sneezed, you can only guess what color it was!

Blakey playing in the dirt, of course.

Nicolas was entertained by the big girls until he saw a pile of leaves.

I managed to wrangle them up for a quick picture. Blakey was not interested in being confined....so much to explore, so little time!

Found the leaves!

"Mom, I almost got it...just hold on, give me a few more minutes and I'll have this thing working....." Well, I'm sure if he had been given a few more minutes, Mr.Determination would for sure have had water gushing everywhere!

We took the boys in the pool and they both liked it a lot. Nicolas was more comfortable with the water but of course, after Jeff got out with Blakey, all he wanted to do was hang over the edge and put his hands in the water.

They enjoyed a little "ride" in this portable hammock.

After our dip in the pool, we decided to break out the backpack that my dad got for us and attempt to take a little hike. We were in the middle of the Santa Ynez countryside on a beautiful 75 degree day and it sounded like a great idea! This picture was taken before we embarked on our trek---- uphill!!!!!

I think Blakey had the best view of all! He really loved being in the backpack. Nico was in my Ergo carrier and it was somewhat comfortable for me. I think I got a pretty good workout when you take into consideration that I was hauling an extra 22 pounds on my left hip!

Yes, Nico HAD to bring his blankie on the hike. It was around their afternoon nap time and we both hoped that the walk would put them to sleep....yeah, right...what were we thinking?

We lasted about 1 mile uphill and then we turned around. Although we were a bit exhausted, it did feel really good to do something that we use to enjoy prebabies. We hope to find another backpack and take more hiking trips. We have several really nice hiking areas near us and we really should be utilizing every part of our expensive zip code!

The hour ride to the campground turned into a two hour ride home with traffic. Two tired, hungry boys did not make for an enjoyable end of the day. They did, however, sleep very well that night and we have our first "camping" trip under our belts!

hugs,

Rebeca