Back Blogging: Camping in June

I love, love, loved this camping trip. It was such a fun start to the summer. We went up near Kelly's Canyon, by Idaho Falls. All my side of the family was able to be there, except my bro, Blaine and his family (they were excused for having a new baby 3 weeks earlier).

Here are the highlights....

First, we found a new way to drive across the ugliness of middle-Idaho -- by way of Craters of the Moon. It was a prettier drive with more to see, and not quite as boring as the normal freeway way that passes through what Brian's brother calls "Idaho's Protective Belt of Ugliness."

Don't judge the entire drive by this picture, which only shows the famous lava beds...

Brian and I were in charge of breakfast the first morning. We cooked an awesome spread of traditional breakfast fare (eggs, hashbrowns, pancakes, bacon and sausage.) When everyone was full, Lance and Brian cooked up the rest of the pancake batter into the most enormous pancake I've ever seen! It was awesome that it stayed whole! (And no, I didn't really eat it, even though I was "eating for two.")

The kids found this perfect little "hiking hill" that became their grand adventure --- going up and down the hill over and over again. Spencer found his own way "down" (pictured, in red), which left us with one less pair of jeans by the end of the trip, oh well...

The bike trailer was also a huge hit! Brian gave the kids rides, two at a time, up and down the road just outside our campground. Good exercise for him, eh? :)

It was Spencer's absolute favorite. This shot (below) was taken before we asked him to get out and let another kid have a turn. I shoulda taken an "after" shot of him screaming, but I was too busy trying to pry his little fingers off the bars to help extract him...

Our cousins came along, and brought their English bulldog, Bubba. I know, she looks dead. But that's just the way she looked. the entire campout. no joke. I love our nephew's look, as he checks her out...

We took the kids on a 30-minute nature walk, on a little trail behind the campground. They LOVED it. Samantha still talks about how fun the "big hike" was, and wants to go back so we can do that again.

They all took turns being "the leader," walking single file on the path. Sammie's at the head of the line in this one (below). Fun times...

Spencer found another new love -- the four-wheelers! He calls them shore-wheelers, and so do we, now...

Everyone took turns riding the four-wheelers, or at least pretending to...

Even my mom and dad...

We rigged up a pinata for the kids. I like the look on Brian's face in most of our pinata pictures... I think he enjoyed being the one to pull it back and forth. ha!

And yes, it was an authentic, red pepper pinata!

I was a little late getting the "after" picture of everyone scavenging for the candy (I had to help Spencer get some).

Dutch-oven dinner and cobbler. Yum!!

And lots of games (though I never got to sit in on the gaming, too bad.)

A gorgeous mountain sunset and songs around the campfire...

Like many really good camping trips, we got rained out Saturday night, and everyone left in a muddy heap first thing Sunday morning. But it was still a great time!

We stopped at this little one-horse town on the way home at their "city park" and ate our lunch sandwiches in this cute little gazebo. The kids loved the caboose...

The end of my first bit of back blogging summer 2010. More to come.