We attended our ward campout. The smartest thing we did in preparing for the campout was ask my parents to watch Spencer that night. The dumbest thing we did was forget our pillows. Bah. I hate camping.
The girls were so excited to sleep in the tent. We were sitting at the campfire while it was getting dark and they kept begging to go to bed. That’s a first. It almost made me think I like camping. Until I remembered I didn’t have a pillow.
Here we are the next morning (the Cheetos were another big thrill for the girls):
We were unexpectedly reunited with an old friend. Brooke had a stuffed dog with rabbit ears that she named Reindeer. She had lost Reindeer ages ago. Turns out she had slept with him in my sleeping bag last year and he got rolled up in the sleeping bag where he’s been ever since. She was ecstatic to see him again.
A couple of weeks ago I was talking to my sister on the phone. We were commiserating with each other about a naughty phase that our children had been going through. She invited us up to her house in the hopes that our kids would entertain each other and be so distracted they’d forget about trying to get into trouble. The plan worked beautifully and we had a much-needed good day.
Here’s my sister and Eli:
Sarah filled up her little pool and the kids had fun playing in it for a few minutes…until it started storming.
Spencer took one step in the pool, slipped, and got soaked:
Dream come true for the girls – a trampoline!
Brooke has been into posing for the camera lately, like so:
Goodness. It’s taken me longer than I expected to finish telling about our Washington adventure. Here’s the final installment!
Caleb and Thad enjoyed a few badminton games:
We visited a spray park. Caleb and Thad had the time of their lives:
Kate also thought it was pretty fun:
Spencer wasn’t a fan:
Brooke and Nina needed convincing to get wet.
Luckily Kate came to the rescue and holding hands they braved the water spouts together:
The next day we went to a play place. There was a funny mirror:
A ball pit:
Some nets and slides:
And a climbing wall:
Later that day Spencer showed us how he really feels about Snakey:
That evening the big kids made star catchers:
The next day we had to leave. Brooke and Caroline were so sad to leave their friends. The car ride home was much less pleasant than the ride there. The kids were cranky, the car toys weren’t as fun, the movies didn’t hold their interest, and the ride seemed to take forever. Plus, I got stung by a wasp during one of our pit stops so that added another degree of misery for me.
We stopped on the way home to see the bridge over the Snake River in Idaho Falls. It was beautiful:
Brooke posing with a statue:
And again:
And again:
Caroline’s turn to pose:
We stopped at IHOP for dinner and were happily surprised to find out that kids ate free! Hooray! Brooke made a pancake face:
After dinner we put the kids in pajamas and ordered them to sleep. They obeyed, and we were able to finish the last leg of the trip in peace.
All in all it was a fun trip and we were glad for the family time together. Brooke and Caroline still miss Kate and Nina and ask everyday if we can go back to their fun house to visit. I guess Mark and Michelle will just have to start planning another cruise so we can visit again!
