Are We Crazy??

DJ and I discovered a shared love a couple years ago when we started going camping. We both love doing the outdoorsy thing so we bought a tent and some other camping necessities while we were still in Albuquerque and since then have gone a few times. Well, we hadn't gone since we moved to Laramie, much to my dismay, being that this might as well be the outdoors capital of the world with all the outdoor activities that you can do around here both in summer and winter. So when I found out that DJ wouldn't have to work this weekend after all, I jumped on our one last opportunity to camp this summer. I also figured that since Jayden was a little older now it might be easier then it would have been at the beginning of summer.

We initially planned to get a little more time in the mountains and head up there to camp but then changed our minds and decided on Kurt Dowdy State Park. This was one other area that we hadn't been to yet since we moved and I didn't want another year to pass before we got to go. It's a well known area in these parts so I figured we should check it out. (That sentence could be said with a western drawl; it has a certain John Wayne vibe to it, dontcha think??)

Anyway, the camping trip was a success!

But I will not be doing it again. Ha.

I learned something on that trip. In my brain, now that I've had a child, I feel very differently about things that crawl on me in the middle of the night. There was a whole new level of freaked-outedness that I've never experienced before, prior to sharing a tent with a baby. And I decided then and there in the middle of the night that I would not be tenting again with babies. I just got all freaked out by the bugs and worrying that they would attack my baby in the middle of the night when we had barely any light to see what creatures we could feel and not see. I'm shuddering just thinking about that.

But as it is, the one time that we have gone with Jayden was a lot of fun and we've decided that Jayden absolutely loves being outside. He is so happy the entire time and is constantly wanting to see everything. Here are some pictures from our adventure!

 DJ is using his special cooking techniques for making an extra yummy campfire dinner of beef, potatoes and onions. It turned out pretty tasty!

 At one point it looked like the fire was going to win but thankfully, it did not.

 Jayden pulls himself up in the play pen now! Once he gets to his feet, he always looks so proud of himself and we always cheer for him. It's so cute.

 Even after a pretty restless night, he still woke up happy!

 The next challenge was to make breakfast over the fire. That was a bit more challenging then the dinner especially because we had exactly 4 pieces of firewood left over. The pinecones came in to save the day.

 Whereas the night before we had to worry about the fire destroying our meal, breakfast's worst enemy was the smoke.

 I was loving Jayden's style on our camping trip. Ha.

 Love those yummy little legs!

 While we were waiting for our breakfast to sloooowly cook, we had smores!

 Jayden's little face just lights up when his daddy is around. Melts my heart.

 This babbling creek babbled all night long - I couldn't decide if I liked that or not but it was definitely pretty!

 Play I Spy! Can you see the chipmunk? This little guy was super friendly and even came up all the way to DJ's shoe when we started feeding him some of our breakfast burritos.

 I loved how he would go over to this little spot in the dirt and wiggle all around like he was taking a dirt bath. It even looks like he was giving me a wave in this picture!

And this picture has absolutely nothing to do with camping except that these gorgeous blooms were waiting for us when we got back. Love!