Daddy's home!

At around 4:00 Sunday, there was a knock on the door and the girls ran to it screaming about daddy being home. The poor man was mauled (literally) by three girlies! Even yesterday Savannah insisted he take her to school and then came bursting in this afternoon demanding to know where he was - I don't think she let him out of her sight all day. We're just glad he took today off to be with us after his long hunt (gone since Thursday evening).

The whole time he was there he only saw one spike and didn't even have a shot. Word amongst the other hunters was that not many people were really successful except maybe all the people out making noise and cutting down Christmas trees (why can't they issue those tags for after the late hunts???) . So despite the lack of the thrill of the kill, he still got to be out in the woods and that can refresh anyone's soul. If I didn't have such littles, I would have been up there enjoying the woods too.

This girl was just as excited as her sisters - she kept crawling over to him and insisting that he hold her (despite the fact that he was grungy and stinky) - you can tell she's excited by her face!
The best part of Nate's return?

#1 the shaving party - the girls were so excited to watch and I'm excited to not be married to scratchy Jeremiah Johnson anymore. and #2 - I didn't have to sleep alone! (see previous post!)

Camping on the Rim

Last weekend we went camping for the first time this year and it was refreshing to get away and into the clean, cool forest air. Not that the 100 degree temperatures have arrived yet, but I’m already bracing myself for them.These are the pictures of the pre-camping excitement and then - hallelujah! - we're there! Yes, the girls are on a tree stump "performing." You would think that I watch American Idol with them, but to be honest, I am one of the only people in the world who doesn't watch that. Sorry, Megan. But that doesn't stop my girls from wanting to create a stage or show off their "talents" wherever they go. But I digress. . . back to the forest. . .



THE FORT: We created a fort for the kids where four trees bunched together and made a perfect canopy of branches for a roof. Jim provided the right wall (blanket), Nate provided the left wall (hammock) and they both were cajoled (by me) into dragging a huge log over for the back wall. The kids had a fort, complete with a "Christmas tree" they decorated with pine needle garland. Grandma Cyndee visited it upon completion and brought fruit as a housewarming gift.


THE HAMMOCK: The hammock brings back many childhood memories of camping. We would play for hours upon hours swinging on a hammock my dad bought in Brazil on his mission. So when I was in a beach town on my mission and saw a similar type hammock, I HAD to get it. So I eyed it for a month and then popped out the credit card my dad sent with me "in case of an emergency" (the only time I used it - besides one incredibly cute pair of heels I took home with me to wear, and still do wear them). So this blue/yellow checked hammock is from Pichilemu, Chile, a gorgeous beach town south of Santiago.

WHAT DO DADDIES DO WHEN CAMPING?

Easy . . . Take kids on nature walks, chop wood for the fire every night (to create coals for the best dutch oven peach cobbler ever . . .a la Nate & Cyndee), or do what daddies do best -- nap -- either alone or with his girlies!

Then here are just a few random pics to remember the trip.

Classic Savannah, flipping the hair out of the face.

Sorry for the overload of pictures, but there were so many good ones that I couldn't decide (I have problems with that - making decisions).