Camping!

 We've gone camping with our friends Tim and Martha (and their kiddos) twice in the last few years. When they asked us to come along with them this year, though, we didn't jump at the chance. There's something about Texas heat, sleeping on the ground, and being six months pregnant that just don't seem to go together very well. :) BUT ... when Martha called us to say that I could sleep in one of the beds in their air-conditioned camper since Tim & Christopher wanted to tent camp, it was an offer we couldn't refuse! After all, our boys absolutely LOVE camping. When we told Ian that we were going to go camping, he said, "YES!" and had a big smile.

This year, the Douglas family invited us to camp with them at Lake Livingston State Park, about 1.5 hours away from our house. As it turned out, God blessed us with an amazing weekend. The weather was just perfect -- one of the coolest weather weekends we've had in a long time! And there was even a really  nice breeze since we were right on the water.

When we arrived on Friday afternoon, the kids started playing with sand toys right away while we adults unpacked and set up the camp site.

 We had a yummy dinner of hamburgers, hot dogs, and lots of sides that evening!

 The kids enjoyed their time lounging in their lawn chairs ...

Mackenzie, Ryan, Ian, Christopher

 ... and watching the camp fire. :)

 Before bed, we walked down to the playground at the camp. The kids (especially Christopher and Ian) really liked the steep, slick slide!

 Ryan and Mackenzie preferred the swings.

 We were able to catch the beautiful sunset before we put the kiddos to bed and we adults chatted around the campfire.

 We all slept great. Of course, Kim, Martha, and Mackenzie had the best set-up ever with sleeping on true beds in an air-conditioned camper. But even the guys had a great night of sleep. God helped to provide them with some "air conditioning," too. What beautiful weather!

As some of us adults got breakfast together, the kiddos wanted to sit right by the lake to watch the ducks and birds.

 We enjoyed a yummy breakfast together ...

 ... and then we took the dogs on a long walk. (We had brought Jon & Chelsea's Schnauzer, Ace, with us since both of them were out of town. The Douglas family had brought their two Schnauzers as well.) Ian was more than happy to be the one to hold Ace's leash.

 We walked to the trading post (which was closed for renovations) and then walked up these stairs to a lookout platform.

 What a pretty view of Lake Livingston!

 Mackenzie and Ryan were a little tired from all of the hiking, so they needed piggy back rides on the way back to the campsite.

 Ryan got a second wind when he saw the ducks. He loved chasing them all around a ne ighboring campsite. They didn't seem as excited to meet him as he seemed to meet them. :)

 Soon, we had some ducks visit our campsite, too. The ducks were much more eager to come close when we offered them some Goldfish crackers and bread. :)

 We got out some water toys for the kiddos after our walk.

 Here, Ian sprays Christopher and Matthew (a Douglas family friend who was camping at a nearby campsite with his parents) with the hose. Chris and Matthew were smart, though, and held up an umbrella to stay a little more dry.

 After lunch, we packed up and headed back home. Ian was happy to have Ace on his lap for part of the trip.

What a fun camping trip, Douglas family! Thank you for inviting us to join you -- and for sharing all of your camping gear and expertise with us. This was certainly one of the boys' highlights of the summer!