Our First Camping Adventure

We got home yesterday from our first family camping trip. This truly was a first time camping experience for Sophie and only a second time for me. I went once 8 years ago as a youth group leader with my church and quickly came to the conclusion that I would never go again. I really appreciate our modern amenities and I am not so great at "roughin' it". Clint, my country boy, happens to be an old pro at camping. He loved bonding with nature these last couple of days and teaching Sophie and I how to appreciate the beauty of the outdoors. We all ended up having a great time and Clint is slowly, but surely turning this city girl into a country lovin' gal. Is there a country song about that? Probably.

Our picturesque campsite at Jordan Lake

With our own private beach
Time to set up camp

The Jeep was packed full of supplies to make our stay a little homier

Our "living space"

The "kitchen/dining area"

The "bedroom"

We had a very cozy night's sleep. Pregnant mommy was in the middle of the air mattress so with a little help from gravity, Sophie and Clint were pretty much sleeping on top of me all night long. I really had to pee too, but I couldn't get up!

The "playroom"

Clint bought Sophie her own little tent to play in. She learned how to put it together herself (with a little help) and she loved having her own space to color and do puzzles.

"Is it time to make the campfire yet?"

Sophie started asking us to build a campfire as soon as we got there. Royal Ranger, Clint, finally showed her how to build the campfire as the sun was setting. Evidently you separate the wood in piles from smallest to largest (pictured above) which also made for a fun activity for Sophie and then you build a tee-pee with the smallest pieces first (pictured below)

Our campfire grew...and grew...

and GREW (I had to ask..."honey, is it supposed to get that big?" Mommy was a little nervous)!

Day 2 - "Let's make another campfire!"

Sophie's favorite part of the camping trip was the campfire and it was the first thing she wanted to do the next day... along with roasting marshmallows, and making smores and hot cocoa of course (what a nutritious breakfast!)

A little mommy-daughter time at the campfire. Doesn't Sophie look like such a big girl?

"I love roasted marshmallows!!!"

"But I'm all sticky now!"

Clint and Sophie enjoyed their hot cocoa together... "Cheers to camping!"

Sophie and I had matching shirts on and she thought that was so cool that she asked Clint to take a picture of us in our matching shirts. I wonder how many more years she will think it is cool to match with mommy?

Time to go :(

Sophie's expression says it all...she was bummed out about going home. Maybe a hot dog will cheer her up?

"Yep, I love hot dogs roasted over the fire. I'm better now!"

Time to pack up What a good helper :)

Even our dog, Max, helped out :)

"This was the best trip ever...I love camping!" I'm so glad we all had such a good time. I can definitely say after this weekend that I WILL go camping again!

Baby Schrades Turns 2!

Earlier this month, sweet Lucas turned 2 years old! Lucas is the little boy that I used to nanny for and Sophie and I were able to help him celebrate the big day. Happy Birthday Lucas! We miss seeing you every day and we love you!

Lucas really loved those cupcakes...especially the frosting!

Sophie had so much fun picking out Lucas's present. She said, "Let's get him some gardening tools for digging in the dirt cause he likes to do that, and a watering can so he can give the flowers a drink or maybe make some mud or maybe get Tyson (his dog) all wet (hee, hee), and some of these garden snakes because boys like snakes." There was actually a much bigger discussion about all of this while we were at Target, but that is the condensed version.

Ooooh...there are some of those snakes. Lucas said "sssssss"!

Go get her Lucas!

Sweet hugs. I wasn't fast enough to catch it all on camera, but you get the idea!

Sophie and Kitty

Sophie's favorite friend around the house is Clint's cat...Tiger. Tiger is a boy cat, however, Sophie can't seem to accept that so she has "changed" the gender of the cat. She renamed the cat "pink" or "pinky kitty" and uses all female pronouns to talk about the kitty. In fact, we all call the cat "kitty" now and I often find myself using female pronouns as well. Poor cat. At least she (I mean he) is well loved!

Picnic at the Park

Last week we had some beautiful, sunny and warm weather so Clint took his girls to Lake Benson Park for a picnic.

The perfect spot for our picnic...under a shady tree


Our pretty view of the lake

A rare photo of me (the puffy pregnant woman with terrible seasonal allergies which cause her eyes to swell shut making them look even more puffy), however, I had to include the picture because there are very few of me and Sophie together since I am usually the one taking all of the pictures!

Sophie enjoying nature while maintaining her dainty pose...too funny :)

Down by the lake, Clint was teaching Sophie how to skip rocks on the water

She loved playing in the wet sand

"Look mom, I made a sandball."

Time to head back home (Sophie loves her Clint-y and I have loved watching them develop their special relationship).

One last stop to admire the tree with pink flowers

Our new ride home...Clint's new Jeep. His old car had over 200,000 miles and was showing signs that it's days were running out so a couple of weeks ago, Clint got a new one. The Jeep has quickly become his pride and joy...boys and their toys! :)