Camping Lessons Learned

Oh I had so many lessons learned that are already fading from my memory as we go from tents back to house. But it was a great trip. I guess the ones I remember are the important ones (or the ones I forget are the ones we need to learn over again :)

What worked well:
-Hobo pie makers were really fun!
-keeping cold weather stuff packed on top of the car so we had it in case we needed it but not in the way.
-quick oats were great for breakfast. I didn't package individual- we just put a lot in a old cashew container (those worked great for lots of packing.)
-freezing water bottles worked great for cold water and keeping cooler cold.
-2 tents for sleeping.
-Having a good plan for the trip- we could have changed parts of it but it was much easier to do most research before we left so we were just deciding what to do at each place instead of where to go/ what to stay.
-Having the kids be big part of set up / tear down. It makes them part of the team, gives them something good to do, and once they learn it really helps all go better!
-$1 solar lights worked well for lights around campground/ to use to go to bathroom.
-Audio books are great!

What we need to improve on:
-Less is better (next big trip we really need to think through what we actually need and only take that- less butter, less toys, less stuff in the camping box
-Walmart bags worked better than trash bags- you can't leave out a big bag anyway- walmart bag is big enough for most meals and we could take that to the dump. next time just pack a couple trash bags.
-water shoes would have been very good to have.
-we had a pretty good packing list but ended up taking lots of extra things/ just in case. It really adds up fast with 8 people. Next time pack everything the day before so no last minute add ins (it would help to not have such a busy day before leaving!)
-Pack the National Parks Passport!! we got stamps and we can add to the book but Pack the Passport!
-we probably could have stayed with people on another couple nights if we'd planned early. Don't be scared to ask.

Meal ideas
Breakfast- burrito, eggs and bacon, pancakes, bagels, oatmeal

Lunch- wraps, sandwiches, taco salad

Dinner- walking taco, hotdog, brats, white clam pasta, foil packets, hobo pie, kababs

Snacks- fruit, granola, chips, nuts, trail mix

Desserts- hobo pies, s'mores

I'm sure I'll think of more but what a great trip!! can't wait to go again!

OBX 2016

so what else would I be doing at midnight than updating the blog. Years from now I may thank our little man for keeping up so I could update this :) Well, I could thank him if I'd actually updated the blog. Now let's see if I still remember our trip :)
I'm sure memories are just like I heard someone say on a podcast today about people: you may not remember the details but you remember them overall.

Pictures will help with remembering the details! I did leave out the pics of the people taking turns being sick in the room- not the most fun part of our trip :)

We had lots of fun in the game room- the NC game was a new addition. So were the new good ping-pong players- amazing how much better the kids have gotten!

We watched lots of beautiful sunrises and sunsets from the balcony and the beach! 

Too cold for ocean swimming but we had lots of fun in the sun! And found cool shells!

Amazing to sit and see God's beautiful sun and ocean (and cute kids too!) 

We love this place! 

And we had an amazing day for Jockey's Ridge- perfect temp, almost no wind, beautiful! 

Love!

Rolling down sand dunes- sandy but fun!

Our new favorite part of the Wright Brothers National Monument is the hands on model-
perfect place for a picnic and pretend!

We also spent a lot of time on the tennis court. Our big four were in the middle of 6 weeks of free tennis clinic which made it even more fun to go practice new skills! 

Kids love our souvenir shop (AKA Good will/ thrift shop)- KG was so happy with these roller blades! And the boys each found nice shirts- can't beat the price. 

our newest walker loved the deck!

We saw deer several nights as we went to see the sunset by Sunset Grill

Ts half birthday breakfast! My favorite 8 year old boy wasn't feeling his best that morning but it was great to spend some time just me and T!

We were excited to get to go on a ranger lead trip looking for animal signs. We rode on the 4WD only beach area. We saw signs of horses but no horses. Still fun!

Love this bridge and our tree! 

Even V enjoyed Roanoake Island- learning about Native Americans here!

And settlers!

They welcomed our school trip there with blacksmith, coopering, and woodworking classes!

Our lunch out- yum! 

Kids enjoyed our scavenger hunt from the OBX Barrier Island Station

V helping pick out the donuts!

A sweet way to end a great trip!

KG is Seven!

How does time go by so quickly? That saying the days go slow, but the years go fast is pretty true. Although lots of days go fast too!

So we got to celebrate KG's birthday a lot this year.

Some corn hole and darts with friends

A fast Easter egg hunt- to get eggs and get out of the rain!

Lots of pink, yummy food, and friends

The birthday girl loved her presents!

This was the first celebration-  

a few days before her birthday with Grandma

This was on her birthday with just the LewCrew

A card from K- 

all the kids gave her sweet presents

A triple celebration with Nana and Papa- we celebrated C, KG, and V's birthday

We're so thankful for our beautiful girl and all our celebrating!

Where to start?

You know it's really easier to blog when you just keep doing it instead of waiting a long time and then you don't know where to start!
well they say a picture is worth a thousand words- and also a great way to remember what we did!

These are not in order but still fun.

v has really taken off with his walking- he wants to do it all the time. He had a blast walking all around the tennis courts while the big kids had tennis lessons. 

James made this beautiful dresser for me- such a handyman!

Just tried roasted cabbage- love it!

love V's his size friend!

Sweet girls at our house for our first God's Girls meeting 

James and kids made this super fire pit. we've really enjoyed it- we even collected some Christmas trees around the neighborhood.

I love that we can have fun helping friends!

we took pics of every egg we got for the first bunch- so sweet!

Love the kids deciding on their own to have a winter picnic!

v wasn't quite ready to get in on the eggs 

stroller buddies! we've been going on a lot of walks- we usually have a couple bike riders, a rollerblader or long boarder, 2 stroller riders, and 2 walkers- so fun!

Our princess Valentine's lunch with friends- KG, C, and I made lots of heart shapes (PB & J sandwiches, apple and pear slices, cheese slices, and cookies.) KG was a great helper. So sweet!

James and I were blessed by a friend watching our kids so we could go out for delicious dinner at Sherefe. For our special night out, we ordered the Mediterranean Feast- so good! And we took food home!

My amaretto coffee was so good!

Our newest tradition is me taking our kids out for each of their 1/2 birthdays. Yes, K's was in January but it was during our fast and who wants their 1/2 birthday celebration during a sweets fast:) so February Waffle House it was- ice and all! It was really nice to get out just the two of us! 

Bubble fun after reading One Small Drop. I wanted to put  a picture of our practicing being bat mommies from Apologia Flying Creatures but haven't downloaded my pic yet and I'm tired. So I'll just remember smelling essential oils and trying to find our baby bats :)

My sweet helper! We were blessed to have a wonderful February where we could have fun and help others!