Last weekend we went camping in Apple River Canyon with two of our close friends.
Never underestimate the power of camping in October. As someone who has camped in the summer my entire childhood, October is the absolute best time of the year to camp, if you ask me. No bugs, warm in the day, cool at night, and gorgeous, gorgeous, GORGEOUS surroundings.
This was our campsite for the weekend. The line of trees in the back was actually the edge of a deep ravine with a rocky stream at the bottom. Best campsite ever (and the girls did great sticking inside the boundaries we gave them - aka "Don't fall in the ravine." lol).
Lexi's favorite pretending game to play is "going camping." We had been gearing her up for this trip for a while, and she was SO EXCITED to finally be camping for real. She also loves any chance to use a flashlight. ;-)
Our trusty tent - been through many a camping night with this one. After two nights with the four of us squished in there, though, I think it might be time for a slightly larger upgrade.
Abbie and Walker, who LOVE to have their picture taken. I still can't believe they braved camping with us and our little kids, but so glad they did!
After pitching our tents, we spent the first afternoon hiking.
This kid has the biggest bluest eyes.
Lyla got a sweet ride on all the hikes.
Abbie worked with the forest preserves this summer, educating kids on invasive plant species. Here she is educating us on the horrors of the ever spreading Garlic Mustard, which is invading the woods and wiping out the native plant life in Illinois.
Lexi won the contest for finding the biggest leaf.
We spent a good bit of time throwing and skipping rocks in Apple River as the sun went down.
Me and my girls. (Eric paid Lexi a dollar to smile in this pic. HA!)
That night we had fun at our fire, eating warm burritos, drinking cocoa, and looking at the stars. And later, curled up in our sleeping bags, thankful for a day well spent.
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