3rd Annual 'Family' Camping Trip

Summer wouldn't be complete without camping! we have gone with a bunch of my dear old Purdue nurses for 3 years now, and each year it never disappoints. these girls hold a special place in my heart. we have gone through nursing school together (where we proudly dubbed ourselves 'the future nurses of America,' ha), graduated and lived as neighbors, got our first jobs together, been in or a part of each others weddings, witnessed each other move into our first houses, and i am sure we will be a part of each others futures just as much. i love how we have grown up as a group!

Okay, enough of the sappy talk. on to the fun!

i am one of those campers that likes to have all of my food ready to go when i arrive. something about raw meat and no sink kinda creaps me out, so i do all of my prep work ahead of time. its a lot do to right before leaving, but way worth it in the end. plus i get to enjoy my campfire time by sitting rather than at the table preparing.

preparing the hobo dinners! i used a zucchini from our garden, it was HUGE!

this year instead of meat, we used smoked turkey sausage. it was really really good- i think it will be our new way to make hobos.

YUMM

Kellen gearing up and training in the living room with his pack

Jess had some leftover glowstick necklaces from 4th of July, and Megan had the great idea of putting them on the dogs so they didn't get lost in the woods at night.
he's blurry, but you can kinda see our glow worm!

i also put one on Kellen so i wouldn't lose him either. it made for some laughs when he went out into the woods for a 'nature' hike

okay, so now i am going to go through the steps to make a 'breakfast in a brown paper bag.'
Megan did this in girl scouts and swore it worked- we were all skeptical. very skeptical.
BUT it did! it's really cool! so for all of you camping buffs out there looking for a new way to cook, here you go. i think this idea will also entertain the kids!

what you need:
brown paper bag
eggs
bacon, strips cut in half
S & P
campfire
prongs
patience

meet megan. she will be our lovely guide through the process.

step 1 :rub the bottom and lower sides inside of the bag with bacon to get the grease/fat as a barrier. this helps things not stick.

step 2: place bacon down in bag (we used 3 half pieces, 1 1/2 total strips)

step 3: crack egg into bag on top of bacon

step 4: sprinkle with S & P

step 5: fold bag over and pierce tongs through both sides of bag so that it hangs

step 6: place over coals to cook. it took about 15-20 minutes. the bag will get a little charred and thats okay.

a fully cooked bag!

step 7: place bag on plate, tear off sides and eat right out of bag. ENJOY!

the lovely group

captain does not share well. i brought raw hide bones for him and Lulu, and of course he took hers and carried them both around in his mouth all night. we tried telling him thats not the way to impress a lady

didn't you get the memo? blue bandannas and striped shirts are for cool chicks only.

this is how we roll!
jess burrowed her mom's old minivan, and gutted out the back so all of us could fit!
i love this pic of megan and captain.

on our way to canoe!

somebody is ready for the boat!
i love this smiling happy dog!

megan, me, stacie, and jessica

i swear captain swam more than he was in the canoe for our 11 mile trip

crazy things

he kept swimming under and around our canoes!

party barge time!

I'm not sure who was the muddiest/wettest in the family at this point...
we only tipped over once! and it's still a very sore subject between me and kel, don't ask

Poor Megan! She had surgery on her wrist few months ago and still has to wear a splint. So she covered it with a trash bag so it would get wet! Way to use your resources!

finally clean but worn out after a long day

let's be honest- camping is really all about the food. we were coming up with all kinds of ways we can use the pudgy pie iron- and i came up with a breakfast sandwich. it was delish. i didn't even offer any to kellen!

on Sunday we always go hiking down to the creek to wind down the weekend. i love how predictable the weekend has gotten year after year. i know some people would think doing the same thing every year gets old, but i feel a bit of comfort out of doing the same thing with the same friends year after year.

yuck. this picture still makes me cringe

waterfall

this says it all. a worn out dog is a good dog.
he got a bath as soon as we got home- before unloading anything. we threw him in the plastic baby pool, combed out all the burrs and suds him down!

We had such a great weekend with some great friends! Looking forward to next year's trip already!