the adventures of the hooks

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Camping at Beaver Creek

It feels like I have had the "camping with kids" conversation over and over lately. Yes, we are slightly nuts to take little ones camping a few times each summer. And yes, as crazy as it feels at times it is totally worth it.

When we took Clara at four months it was easy. But that was just because she was an easy baby (Mr. Calebo, not quite so much). She slept something like 200 hours at night (or 10ish) and coo'ed lovingly during the daytime hours. Maybe that's a slight exaggeration, but it was just easy. Easy.

When Clara was fifteen months, it was not easy. She was a mess almost the entire time but that paled in comparison to her nighttime behavior. She freaked out when she awoke during the night and made the trip quite insane (mostly for Jono who drove her around in the middle of the night and then slept in the car). If we were going to throw in the towel, this was the year to do it. Instead, we went twice that summer. Slightly nuts? Probably.

When Clara was over two it was still messy. It was also a little less crazy than the year before in the sleep department. But my 20-something week pregnant body made up for any sleep improvement by waking numerous times at night to squat next to the tent trailer. Not fun.

When Clara was three and Caleb joined in on the action (this year!!), it was pretty great. Messy, sure. A little tiring, yes. But this year Clara actually played (like all day long) with her friends. Caleb kind of needed to be held continuously to avoid getting really dirty, but he was at a great age for camping.

Next year? We'll be back to the one year old craziness (the hardest camping age, I think). But we're officially committed. And if we've made it this far, there's not turning back. ;)

Here is our weekend camping with our friends the Rockwells, Gutmans, and Pickerings at Beaver Creek, in pictures. It was a wonderful weekend of sunshine, beach time, hiking, food, campfires, and endless play for the kids.

Around camp...

And just one shot from our upper Priest Trail hike...

Little evening soak after putting the kids down (pretty much the most awesome picture. ever.)

Beach time...

The crew of ladies (Rhiannaon, Steph, Shelley, Carly & yours truly)

The crew of kiddos (yes, twelve of them!)

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Photo shoot

In late June we had family pictures taken from a sweet friend of mine, Angela with Stillpoint Photography. Some of my favorite pictures (which still adorn our walls) were taken when Clara was six months old. I adore this stage (of sitting and not yet moving) and I wanted to make sure and capture Caleb at the exact moment in time too.

Although we have some great pictures of the kids, we rarely take pictures of all of us together and let's just be honest, Angela is awesome. So I'm really glad Jono agreed (despite his reluctance - not with Angela but just with photo shoots in general) to family pictures. It was my mother's day present, after all, so he kind of had no choice ;).

In all honesty we're so happy we captured this stage. It is so hard and so good at the same time. And I want to remember these sweet moments of the 6 month/ish stage - even when I look at these photos and remember having to bribe Clara with ice cream and nurse Caleb mid-shoot in hopes for just one or two good ones. Sheesh.

Here are a few of our favorites. Now on to deciding which ones to order!!

Thank you, Angela! You are wonderful and talented and oh so patient!!! Check her out here.

P.S. Yes, I see now how ridiculous our patriotic family looks. I wasn't going for red, white & blue and am kind of embarrassed of our color selection ;). The individual shots look fine but the whole family ones might just need to be printed in black & white!

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

The Lake, 2012 Edition

There is something about the places that hold the best childhood memories. The great recollections never seem to fade - and neither do the feelings associated with the place. Whenever we pull up to a stop at the lake, I swear I get the same feeling that I did twenty-two years ago when we climbed out of the car and raced to get the first view of the lake. Maybe it's the fresh mountain air. Or the incredible view of the dock, framed by the hanging flowers, the hammock trees, and the teepee that has stood since my childhood. It might just be the peaceful feeling of no agenda or deadlines or to do lists. Whatever the reason for the feeling, it is one I cherish with each passing year.

The thing that makes it all so much sweeter is watching my little girl create the same memories and feelings associated with the lake. This reality sure helps during the moments of nap struggles, parenting issues, nursing schedules, and early mornings that are part of the new lake memories these past few years. Time at the lake may not be quite as carefree as the years gone by, but there are wonderful moments of relaxation still. And more importantly, there are tons and tons of new memories being made. These ones are even better because they'll be shared with our kids - and there's nothing better than watching your little girl fall in love with the place you have loved since childhood.

All of this is quite the preface to say that we just got back from the lake. We spent nine days together as a family (the whole Vaughn clan) at Priest. And our group keeps growing! All family members were present - including Ethan's girlfriend Micheal (Ann), making for ten adults, two toddlers and two babies. We rented an additional cabin to fit the fourteen of us and packed both spaces to the brim.

I am sure I sound like a broken record when it comes to lake reflections throughout the years, but I'll say it again. I just love the lake. And I love my family. Nine days is a long stretch of time - but it still seemed to fly by. We packed a lot into the days, but had a fair amount of nothingness as well. Here was our time together in (a lot of) pictures...