Family feast in the woods...

Our final night in the camper we headed back up north and spent the evening camping at Bull Run Regional Park.  It made for the perfect central location to invite Andy's family to join us for an outdoor feast around the fire. 

Adam was excited to see his cousins and had fun playing in the leaves and watching them climb trees.  We had a great dinner of hamburgers and brats and finished the night with s'mores. 

It was a great way to end our fun camping weekend!

Trip to Jamestown

I remember as a kid LOVING Jamestown so I was excited to take Andy (who had never been) and Adam knowing they'd love it too.  It is really so well done, and the new museum was great with lots to keep Adam's attention. 

Once outside we had fun walking through the Indian village and then up to the Fort where we walked through the masonry, the Church of England, and got to see the Governor's mansion. 
 

Then we made our way to the water and got to not only see the ships but got to go onto them.  I'm not sure I recall being able to board the ships as a kid, so this was an added bonus for sure.  The tour guides, dressed to the times, were great and encouraged us to explore and even lay down in the beds.  Adam was mesmerized!
 

After exploring the ships we walked back through the Indian village and let Adam run around.  He was very well behaved and seemed to really be taking it all in.  Looking forward to exploring more places like Jamestown with Adam in the future.

Pre-Thanksgiving...in the woods

I'd have to say that Pre-Thanksgiving is definitely my third favorite holiday of the year...behind of course the real Thanksgiving and Christmas.  This year marked the 8th annual Pre-Thanksgiving and while we had a minor hiccup (originally we were slated to celebrate at Wintergreen but mold and leaking walls got in the way..sorry Dad) we didn't let that get us down and instead we invited our wonderful friends, Chris and Aimee and their son Ryan to the woods for "Pre-Thanksgiving on a stick!" 

Ok, so the only sticks used were those we threw to Liddy, but I think that saying has a nice ring to it. I have to say though, I was very impressed with the feast we were able to put together in the middle of the woods, and while we did have an oven in our camper, it didn't work. So, we had to get creative and found that the smoker was the perfect device for cooking mashed potatoes, stuffing, and of course the turkey! 

 

It was so great spending time with our friends and Adam and Ryan had fun playing in the woods together.  The fire was the perfect backdrop and we were once again reminded of how thankful we are for our family that isn't blood related. 

Happy Pre-Thanksgiving to all our friends!

 

Playing catch...

There aren't a whole lot of things that are better than sitting back on a brisk fall day and watching your husband throw a football with your son. Throw in a pumpkin ale and it's autumnal heaven.

Jump!

It just so happens that right behind our camp site was a HUGE jumping pillow.  Think trampoline dressed up as a giant pillow.  So while Adam napped...we jumped. 

Santa?!

After a tasty breakfast of sausage and pumpkin pancakes we hopped in the car for an early morning visit to the Yankee Candle store.  This isn't just any Yankee Candle store, this is a mammoth candle wonderland with an entire section devoted to Christmas, 365 days of the year.  So yes, this was on my list of "must do's" during our camping trip.  Little did I know we were about to find ourselves in the middle of an all out Christmas block party!

The Christmas carols were blasting over loud speakers, everyone was wearing Santa hats or the lovely foam antler ear hats that they were passing out, and I felt like I was right where I belonged!  Adam and I danced and sang "Jingle Bells" and before we knew it, Santa and Mrs. Claus were riding down the street in their horse drawn sleigh.  AH-MAZING! 

I'm certain I didn't stop smiling all day...

The Family and the Camper...

I must say when Andy rents a camper...he really rents a camper.  This was truly a house on wheels and with my personal touches (pumpkins, scented candles and sweet cinnamon pumpkin hand soap) it was the perfect place to spend a weekend in the multi-colored woods. 

To say that Adam was excited about the prospect of spending a weekend in a camper was an understatement.  In fact, the word ecstatic wouldn't even come close to describing it.  Have I mentioned the brain washing that's been taking place since Adam was likely only the size of pea??  Adam was all about investigating every inch of the camper and when it came time to helping Daddy, he was right there willing to lend a hand. 

Liddy on the other hand was all about the fresh air, and of course the sticks.  For those of you that don't camp (I'm talking to you Mom and Dad) there are a lot of sticks in the woods.  This makes for a very happy Liddy. 

We sat by the fire and told campfire stories...did you hear the one about the baby that came out of the womb chanting "camper camper camper!?" 

We made hand print turkeys and played with stamps and stickers (you didn't think I'd leave my Martha side at home did you?)

To be honest, I think I could get used to this...