Abby's camping birthday celebration!

Last September we went for our very first, official family camping trip. It was a huge hit, and since that time, Abigail has wanted to go camping again whe it was her birthday. So the time finally came. We went on Thursday the 21st and left on Monday the 25th, Memorial Day. Her actual birthday is the 24th. We invited all to come, and we were joined by Grandma and Grandpa Lawes, Jenny and Justin and Taylor and Kai and Patrick and Katie. We went hiking and fishing and lots of campfire fun. It was colder than we thought it would be, especially Saturday night. It poured rain and even hailed. It was very cold, and of course that's the night we had the actual birthday party. Grandma and Grandpa Wood, Callie, Faith, Chloe, Kaitlyn and Amber came, and probably wished they hadn't. They came for cake and presents and were pretty happy to go home to a warm dry bed. We stayed however and were greeted the next morning by blue skies and sunshine. It was a sixth birthday party to remember. We hope to make camping an annual trip or even more often. Hopefully we can have a warmer trip next time, but we had so much fun.

This is our hiking trip.We had fun hiking a mountain for 2 hours. The kids all did great and they wanted to do it again as soon as we got back to camp.

Abby's actual party was lots of fun except that it was really cold, windy and rainy. We had a great dinner and some yummy cake. And of course presents. She got an iPod, a digital camera and cowgirl boots and hat. Yee Haw!

Fishing was a big hit. Nobody caught a fish, but it was lots of fun trying. I love these pictures because it shows some really neat relationships. My favorite pics are always the ones that are not posed.



We had lots of fun and laughter and of course, some tears. Our trip was a huge success and we can't wait to do it again!

The dirt that followed us home was in huge amounts. Also the smoke smell is still all around, especially in some of the leftover food. It makes me nostalgic. I want to go again now!

ANYONE UP FOR SOME MORE CAMPING!!