The Great Outdoors {Re-Cap}

Ok, it's finally time for a Camping Adventure Re-Cap!!
All together now, "YES!!!"
Wait, why was I the only one that cheered for that? You all know you are totally excited to see the pictures & hear the details, just admit it, we won't judge, we're all friends here...except for that guy in the back...I don't know who let him in...

Anywho, on to the good stuff, you might want a grab a snack before the slideshow begins....

CAMP ROCK- LODGING:

• Our home for the weekend. Just because we were tenting it, doesn't mean things can't be cozy...or coordinating...
• Our view for the weekend.

THE FOOD & DRINK:

• Our Road-Trip Necklaces were a HIT!
• Campfire Breakfast
• Campfire Lunch
• Campfire Dinner (mentioned in this post)
• "Campfire" Cupcakes for dessert- devils food cupcakes topped with chocolate marshmallow frosting & graham crumbles.
• more dessert...
• ...more dessert & a lesson on how to really eat a s'more ;)
• Fresh homemade lemonade. Like the little log we burned all weekend? When in need head to the woods for supplies!
• Cheers

FUN & GAMES:

• Lots of exploring with the "dada"s
• The Hubs enjoying some Campfire convo
• Jill & Nate telling tales of their recent trip to Europe
• Boy+stick+dirt=Happiness
• Tossin the ol' pigskin (Why does that always sound so inappropriate?)
• Jamie (right) & Maddie (left)
• Charlotte taking a dip in our makeshift kiddie pool :)
• A campground with an Arcade, good. Jamie winning Jill a bangle from said Arcade, freaking awesome. 
• There's nothing like a game of Doggy Doo to remind you why you are all friends.
• Our doggy ran into some digestion issues so Dr. Nate came to the rescue
• Not only did someone actually make & market this game, but my friends actually bought it. And THAT is why we are friends :)

NOT SO FUN & GAMES:

•  We had a scare Saturday Night. 'J' woke up crying & when we checked on him his face & lips were starting to swell & he was drooling like crazy. Our first thought was "Grab the Epi-Pen, he's having an allergic reaction!" quickly followed by "I don't want to have to stab my son in the leg!!!" then "How did he get dairy?!?! He's been asleep for two hours!!". After doing a quick assessment we decided to try liquid Benedyl first. He quickly passed out so I took him back in the tent & lay down with him. I could NOT TAKE MY EYES OFF OF HIM. I took picture after picture to compare to see if the swelling was going down.
• Everyone else went fast to sleep, I on the other hand did not. I lay with my hand on his chest most of the night to make sure he was breathing. Even when hours had passed & he seemed to be doing a lot better, I just couldn't shake it. We have been dealing with this allergy his whole life, that is the closest we ever came to using "the Pen", & it's something I never want to have to use on my child. Ever.
• We woke up in the morning & embraced a new day. Thankful for the blessings in our life. Thankful I didn't have to use "the Pen". 'J' was in good spirits, & then about an hour later we started to see some allergy symptoms quickly returning. *LIGHTBULB MOMENT*, its something at Camp!We had just lit the fire. The Wood!!! There was something in the wood, when burned, that was getting in the air & causing an allergic reaction in 'J'. We gave him some more Benedryl & tried to keep him occupied away from Camp while also trying to pack camp up. I finally realized what a silent blessing it was that 'J' has food allergies, otherwise we NEVER would have been prepared with Benedryl (& an Epi Pen) within arms reach & things would have went from bad to worse VERY quickly. Thinking back his eyes started getting red/watery & his nose started to run saturday evening (you can see it in some of the pics of him above), but we thought that he had just gotten smoke in his eyes & they were irritated. Oh how wrong we were.

FRIENDS & FAMILY:

• The Menfolk
• The Ladies
• Sitting on our favorite spot at Camp Rock, the first of many annual trips to come :) You know those non family people in your life that are well deserving of "Aunt" & "Uncle" to your kids...these are those people. They may not be blood, but that doesn't mean they aren't family.
• And of course I had to toss in a pic of little 'A', please don't sue me if your ovaries just exploded...he brings a whole new meaning to the phrase "If looks could kill"...