Our second camping trip!

So, only 2 weeks after our first camping trip we took another one to Yosemite! My parents came into town for Isabel's birthday and since we had all the stuff we decided to try it again. Jon even surprised us all by joining in. We rented a 8-passenger Chevy Traverse and we loaded that thing to beyond full. By the time we got there everyone in the back had lost all feeling in our legs. It was worth it as Yosemite is a gorgeous area and we all had fun. It was the first time the entire family had been together in over a year and a half.


That is half-dome in the background.

Ryan actually went under and swam right after this photo.

Isn't this place gorgeous!

Both nights we got back to camp so late that we were eating dinner in the dark.


Playing in and around the tent. Dirt is so much fun!

The water in Yosemite was so clear and crisp. It's glacier water so it's pretty cold but felt so good and the feet either became used to it or just numb...



Yosemite was very crowded and with 2 small children we didn't get as much hiking in as normal but we still got a good overview of the park. Now that Ryan and I are becoming camping pros we think we can take little weekend trips like this more often. The girls love it and Avery keeps asking to go back.
Getting the kids to sleep while camping is one of the hardest parts of the entire camping endeavor. That and the fact that everything takes just a little bit longer than normal. Anyway, one of the funniest moments was during the first nights attempt to get Isabel to sleep. The late bedtime, the s'mores, the different bed all contribute to her inability to fall asleep so usually Ryan and I have to lay in there with her. (This night was really bad due to the fact that Grandma and Grand-daddy both gave her soda!) Anyway, Ryan and I were in our tent with the girls and Isabel was just bouncing (literally) from wall to wall, screaming, laughing, singing, just having a good time. Then she comes over to our bed and lays down, finally we thought, she'll fall asleep. About 30 seconds later we hear gurgle, gurgle gurgle, swallow, gurgle gurgle gurgle, swallow repeat... She had discovered what fun water in the mouth could be. Needless to say it was too cute and too funny to be mad, we just laughed. We found out the next day that my parents could also hear it and they also were laughing in their tent.