July... (yes, July)

We went camping in July!  My sisters and I went camping many summers in a row with our grandparents to a place in upstate New York called Fish Creek - the same place my mom used to go as a child with her brothers and sister.  My grandparents had a small pop-up camper that we stayed at for about a week or two in the summer.  Having kids myself, I now understand that this was mainly a break for my mom and dad but we enjoyed it as well.  My Uncle Bill has gone back there camping in the past few years and asked if anyone else wanted to go this year and we all made a plan to go.  It was basically a small family reunion and we rolled it into a birthday party for my mom and dad who turned 70 in August/October.  My sisters and their kids went along with my family and all of my uncles and aunts (with the exception of one).  We drove up and endured a few nights rain and cold nights in a tent.  The kids were snug in their sleeping bags that we got them (as an early Birthday present) from LLBean that were rated for 40 degree temperatures.  I had several layers on plus a down comforter and still shivered through the night.  It was a little rough in the rain - mostly because the bathroom was a few minutes away and most of my trip was spent going back and forth to the bathroom but I think (hope) the kids had fun.

Here's some pictures from the trip...

Hanging out inside the tent!

Getting ready for bed...

Everyone wanted their own flashlight!

The view from our campsite

Hanging out near the water.

What a great view!

 There was a small beach area as part of the campground that we drove to, along with a playground.

Olivia swimming out a little too far out!

Tony collecting some sand.

Amelia helping to build the sand castle.

Olivia's sand castle creation.

The last day of camping, we had a birthday party for my mom and dad.  It was supposed to be a surprise, but I think my mom knew about it a little beforehand.

The birthday couple walking up the party venue...

No paper plates for this party!  We use real plates when we camp!

Everyone enjoying the food!

My sister put together a few books for my parents - the one for my dad included all of the 'wooden' things he's made for us over the years and my mom's was an extensive family tree.

My mom and dad and her four brothers and their wives!

My mom and dad with all of their grandchildren :)

In addition to camping the kids spent a lot of time outside in the pool.  They got really nice tans.  I attended a wedding shower for Melanie's sister - Emily.  It was a nice afternoon away to celebrate her upcoming nuptials.  I didn't get any great pictures, but it was fun.

Our town had a few 'food truck' events that we went to.  Basically several food trucks were invited to the downtown area and they had some tables/chairs set up.  The kids liked eating and running around afterwards.

The only other thing in July was the starting of swimming lessons.  Olivia is naturally a very good swimmer - she's pretty good and catching on pretty quickly.  Tony and Amelia are not as 'talented' but I hope that at least they'll be able to get to the edge of the pool and not drown if something were to happen.  God forbid!

(writing this in December - makes me long for the long summer days)