Camping Trip

The boys and I went camping with some friends at Lake Chelan State Park.  We left on Friday and came back on Sunday.  We arrived at Lake Chelan at around 11am, just in time to start our camping trip with a day at Slidewaters (a water park).  The boys LOVED it!  The boys and I stuck together about half the time, then we had lunch!  (And boy could my boys eat!  I packed 5 PB&J sandwiches among other foods and by the time we left, they were all gone!)  And the best part was that the park was small enough and our group pretty much occupied about half the park, that the boys could navigate the park on their own (with a friend, of course!).  The lifeguards were awesome (were actually watching the kids), which always helps you feel better about their safety.  They would come check in with me and then go hit another slide!  I could not have been more proud of them. 

 And, because they were so well behaved, we ended our water slide experience with a yummy ice cream cone!!

We then got to the campground and set up our camp.  We went with my friend Angela (and here family) and her friend Karissa (and her family).  But, we were also part of a much larger group (the church that Angela attends) of about 204 people.  Angela promised me that it was going to be the easiest camping trip ever (which was especially important to me given that Kelly had a last minute business trip come up and wasn't able to attend with us) and so I went with the two boys and my brave soul!!

Logan was quite concerned because he saw that I wasn't packing too much food (just snacks) and kept saying "I hope someone is bringing the food, mom!"  "I hope someone is bringing the stove to cook the food, mom!"  Very cute!  Our group planned all the meals and each family brought a small portion of what was needed for the 204 people and when put together we had meals...and really good meals, at that! 

I grew up doing tent and trailer camping.  My parents have taken us camping (in their fifth wheel), but we have never done tent camping with the boys.  Probably because I haven't been brave to figure out all the details involved!!  So, here we are on our first tent camping trip and we are WITHOUT Kelly!  YIKES!!  Angela had best be right...this had best be the easiest camping trip ever!

And it was!  We had some wonderful camping neighbors right next to us (part of our larger group) and they were very gracious to help me set up the tent.  As a matter of fact, they would appear out of nowhere in my hour of need and would help whenever I needed it!  Thank you Forest! 

Our first night we had s'mores for dessert and the boys were lovin' that!

Carson was all about the whole experience.  Fire, roasting marshmallows and a S'more!  Yummy!

Logan was just about sticking his marshmallow in the fire, setting it on fire, blowing it out and EATING it!  In far too big of a hurry to bother with putting a S'more together when he could eat more burnt marshmallows!  LOL!

 Saturday we went to the beach, which was a short walk from our camp site!  Logan and Nolan (Angela's youngest son) played together incessantly!  They have known each other since they were born and are months apart from each other!

Logan called this his "Damage"...instead of a "Dam".  Very cute!

Very serious business building a dam!

The boys LOVED playing at the lake!  They even played together for a short period of time!

 We had our meals on a large grassy area.  The boys got very comfortable where to find the food, fix themselves a plate, get something to drink....and of course, go back for more!  They played super hard, so they ate a TON!

Me and my silly boys!

 We had a quiet time that afternoon (since we weren't taking naps), so all the kids in our small group got into one tent and watched "Tangled" while the parents relaxed a bit and hung out with each other!

Logan playing his banjo!!  And singing too!

Carson and Mason were buddies on this trip!  They are also the same age and have known each other since they were babies!

Sunday was our final day there.  We ate breakfast and then had to tear down camp.  I bribed the boys to help me do this horrific task.  I told them that if they were good helpers, we would stop and buy some ice cream before we left the campground.  Man, that worked like a charm.  I even bribed the other kids in our group.  They would bring over some of our stuff that was left in their campsite (like chairs, jackets, bubbles, etc.,)  I gave them a handful or pocketful of popcorn every time they came over with more of our stuff!  They were happy to oblige, and I was forever grateful for the help!

We got camp all torn down and I got into the van to look for my sunglasses.  Darn it!  I left them in the tent (which was already packed into the van)!  So, Carson and I pulled it out and unfolded it and sure enough, the glasses were inside in one of those hanging pockets (obviously forgot to check them)!  Won't do that again!

The boys were such great helpers, that we went for a walk along the river and the lake, then went to get ice cream!

Carson and Logan acting civil toward each other (YEAH!) while on a walk along the river!  Gorgeous, huh?

Pausing for a family photo with Lake Chelan in the background!

All in all, we had an AWESOME weekend!  I did it!!!  But it certainly wasn't by myself!  Angela and Karissa and their families were a HUGE help to me.  They were always watching the boys while I went over to our campsite to do whatever.  Our sites were across from each other, but all the activity went on at their campsite.  It was wonderful that the boys had other kids to play with, that the food was pretty much provided for us and that we could spend the weekend with wonderful friends!  We're definitely planning on doing it again!! (if they'll have us back...LOL!!).

It was also nice to come home to a rotisserie chicken on the grill, see Kelly and have his help unloading the van!  You know, it's the little things that make your day!

Oh, and one more thing!  The number one thing that I was worried about was having the boys pee their beds.  The closest laundry facility was 30 minutes away!  So, I packed every blanket in the house, thinking that if they peed on them, we could just stick them in a huge garbage bag, put them in the van and deal with washing them later.  You know what??  Neither boy peed their bed the first night!  Logan had a small accident the second night, but Carson was dry!  YIPEE!  This momma was very excited about that success!

Carson

Here are the teacher/helper/bus driver gifts that Carson gave this year.  They were a big hit with everyone and we had a lot of fun getting them ready!  I've even heard that a couple teachers even took pictures of the gift so they could use it in the future for their students to make for Mother's Day or the like.

Love, love the "Dear Teacher" font that I used to make these cards!  Doesn't it look just like a Kindergartener wrote them?

Carson lost his front two teeth on the same day!  They had been bugging me because they were all wiggly and the dental floss would go straight to the root everytime I brushed his teeth.  I offered to pay Carson to allow me to pull them! (that's how bad they were bugging me!).  He wouldn't take me up on it!  So, later that morning they fell out all by themselves!  (except Carson didn't get the extra cash for his piggy bank)! LOL!  He has officially lost 6 teeth total!  He's having some difficulty eating and speaking!  I have to ask many times, "what are you saying!"  Too funny...

The toothless Carson

 Carson's last day of Kindergarten was on Monday, June 20th and his class had a little graduation ceremony.  They got to make their own smores (and Logan even got to join in and eat as well)!

The very excited Carson prepares his S'more!

 The class sang about 8 songs to us and they were all very cute!  Then they prepared themselves to receive their Kindergarten graduation certificates!

Here's a video of Carson receiving his certificate (just push play)!  Carson, we are so proud of what a great job you have done in Kindergarten!  You are officially a FIRST grader!  WOW!

The graduated Kindergartener

 Caron had to pose with his teacher, Mrs. Geist.  What a great teacher she was!  We will really miss having her (although will hopefully have her again for Logan in 2 years).  Thanks for all you do to help Carson and other students!

Carson and Mrs. Geist

Carson wanted to keep in touch with some of his classmates this summer, so we made these cute little business cards for Carson to hand out!  Hope someone calls...

Happy Summer to All!!

Logan's Last Day of Preschool!

I'm such a terrible blogger!  One minute I am going strong with documenting life and another minute I want nothing to do with it.  Hmmm...guess that's life, huh?  One of my big reasons for blogging is to share stories, pictures and videos with friends and family...especially those that do not live close to us.  So, here I go...let's try this blogging thing again!

Logan's last day of preschool was on Thursday.  I always try to have a small gift for not only teachers, but everyone that impacts my child's life at school (including bus drivers, speech therapists, para educators, etc.,).  So, this is the gift that I came up with for this year.  We bought terra cotta pots and the boys painted them, added soil and chose their flower.  We then stuck a fork in the soil and added a photo with a little note to each person.  Between the two boys, we had 14 of these to make!  When we went to deliver them, everyone was very excited about them and the boys enjoyed giving them.  

School Gifts

Note attached to gift (I just love this 'Dear Teacher' font!)

Logan with Miss Jodie, his teacher

 His preschool did a cute little presentation, including music, receiving of certificates and a cap ceremony for the kidos who were moving onto Kindergarten (not Logan). This is Logan and his classroom singing a song titled, "Love Grows"!  Logan is constantly singing this at home (complete with hand motions as well!

Logan receiving his Certificate

 They even had a special snack for the kids and Logan was waiting sooo patiently for this part (which of course was his FAVORITE!).  I was chatting with Logan about the upcoming party before he went to school.  I explained that I wasn't able to stay for the whole thing because I needed to be home for when Carson gets off the school bus.  I asked Logan if he wanted to come with me when I left or take the bus home.  He says, "Mom, I'm staying at the PARTY!"  Well, of course you are!  Very funny and cute!

Logan just LOVES preschool and will greatly miss his teachers and friends.  Before school was even out, he was already asking "Mom, can I play with _____ this summer?"  So, I whipped up some little cards to give his friends so they could call us for a play date or something.

Carson's last day of Kindergarten is tomorrow, so I will blog about his fun day as well!  He can't wait!