Survivor

It's always a good sign when there's talk of the next camping trip before we're even close to being done with the one we're on. This was Johnson's 4th camping trip in his life and he survived!!!! Yay!!!! We had a great time with great friends. Unfortunately the weather wasn't great, but it was good enough. Good enough even for all the kids to jump in the lake. Thanks everyone for making this a smooth and fun filled weekend.

Beautiful mossy trails, tall shady trees, clear lake water, tents professionally set up by Brian, clean air, laughter, chubby bunny contest, warm smokey fires, bacon grease fires, smores, children at constant play in the woods, little boys peeing on trees, swimming out to the island, crying children on a log, late nights filled with funny stories, great camp fire meals, and zero bear encounters ...priceless.

This is all the kids did. Run and play. They were all so wiped out. One night the Croke boys were so pooped that little Kasen had to speak up and demand "mom take us to bed, please!"

As I was going through this picture I had to stop and think about where all the kids were when this was taken. Obviously from the previous picture the older ones were busy in the woods, but where were the babies?
Oh, if only Vince were here. The EQ tat clan missed their other brother. I personally missed his wife. I was so looking forward to some good ole' stories from sis. Greco.
I know Boston loved camping. She was in food heaven. We'll have to plan a pancake breakfast a little better next time. It probably took us about 2 hours to make pancakes, eggs and bacon. Oh, and in case you don't know this, bacon grease is flammable. I tried cooking our bacon on foil over a fire, not the best idea I've had. (sorry about your pan Trish).
Brian's probably not going to thank me for posting this picture (because of baby #1, i thinks that's what he called it), but his kids are so stinkin' cute. I'll always remember Titus' saggy diaper and the awkward jog I made back to camp to get him a new one.
My little bump on a log. I'm so glad the sun finally made it out on Saturday at like 4 p.m. Boston had a great time in the water with her daddy. Malachi on the other hand took a little convincing. I think once he saw how much fun she was having on this log, he finally changed his mind.


I love living such a beautiful state. I wish our weather was a little better year round so that we could enjoy the outdoors more.

Super Dad! On the way back to camp from the lake both of the girls fell asleep. I'm so surprised Boston didn't fall down, even more surprised she fell asleep up there. But like I said, these kids just kept going, all-day-long.
The chubby bunny winner. And we didn't use regular marshmallows. Nope, we used those honkin' huge campfire marshmallows. Trish was able to get 3 in her mouth and say "chubby bunny." AMAZING!
I only had 2 in my mouth and could not get one word out. This was my first attempt at this game and it was disappointing to say the least. From everyone's expressions though, I think I at least brought some entertainment value.
The Croke boys were so patient with Boston. She was all up in their business, the whole weekend. The night Kasen begged to be put in bed, I thought Kyler was going to loose it with her because she was all over him. Rubbing his face, shaking his head, laying in his lap, kicking her legs, and even yelling in his ears. They just kept having fun with her, allowing her to even wrestle them to the ground.

I guess the moss was soft enough to take a nap on. (Kyler, Chi & Kasen)
Oh wait...we did sight a bear. Boo Bear. This is Boston having a moment while we were taking one last hike. Mommy and Daddy were being so mean by making her walk off all the junk food she ate.
We should of known that she was just tired. Johnson left the group and headed back to camp with her. By the time they got there she was knocked out.
And just for the fun of it here is a cute shot I got of Jordan recently. I think she's 10 weeks old in this picture. This isn't from our camping trip, but since I didn't have many of her I thought I'd throw this one in. This was right after a shower with me. She was knocked out from the soothing warmth before I could even get out. I hated waking her up from this, but she really needed a diaper.