Pentwater Paloooza.....

Well we survived our first tent camping trip with the kids and you know what - no big deal. Don't get me wrong camping is a lot of work, but I think it is a lot of work with or without kids. The kids were the least amount of work once you prepare to pack, unpack so that was a blessing they got along great with their friends and really proved they are at a great age for all this. The weather Gods also cooperated and gave us one of the best weekends this whole summer which provided for a lot of activities to be had. We had a lot of beach time, campfires, concerts, fireworks, playgrounds, horseshoe tourneys - the kids had a ball and left completely saturated in sun and sand and were exhausted when we got home. I had one kid voluntarily walk to their bedroom put on jammies (big guess who this is...) and just laid down in bed at 5pm the other one slept in until 9am so apparently the 11:00 bedtime two nights in a row caught up to them!

Here are a lot of pix of the weekend......(sorry for the quantity but this becomes my scrapbook at the end of the year!)

We finally traded in our two person apartment for the "family" penthouse!

Group shot of the campers enjoying some time at the park....

Come and ride the train......the choo choo.......

Brady man and his bud griffy....not sure if this is a kiss or an attempt to bite off his cheek

The girls hangin out by the campfire....

Getting silly.....

Isn't this the real reason we all go camping......The Smore!


So Rob and Chris show up at a horseshoe tourney and the guy goes "did you bring your shoes" and they both looked at the guy like "ummm Yeah we are wearing them" Little did they consider he was talking about "horseshoes" and these weren't regular Joe smoes they signed on with......
Here is Chris in action let's just say that there are other sports where the dear old Dad excels and horseshoes might not be one of them - they were 3-13 in the tourney....

Most likely because this is an example of what they were competing with.....by the way this is Jim and he tours the US throwing "shoes"

Meanwhile while the boys were busy getting their bootys handed to them the moms took the kids to the beach.....



Loving the new camera and some new features to play around with - check it out....lots more to learn!

Dad and Brady bugs hanging fireside...


Din Din a cooking.....Salmon and a ball o' beef and potatoes for one non fish eating girl.



Near......Far.......Where ever you are......somehow it never gets old....

Nothing like a cool refreshment after a hot day in the sun....


Our lovely path down to Lake Michigan...
The beach was gorgeous - it had this big wading pool before you got to the big lake and the kids loved this part!
Peace people....cause I am sure she knows what that means.....
Sports Illustrated - August 2009 All she needs is some dread locks and Dudley Moore besides her.....
Going for a walk up the sand dunes....

I love this kid more than life - no tantrums, no meltdowns......just grabs his towel and lays down and says "I'm Tired".......Heading out for a beach concert and some night life.....as much as these kids have ever seen!

Brooke was a little in awe of a band on the sand......
Firework display.......Brady still needed earmuffs on.....he is all about the sight not the sound....
My sweet baby girl - camping extraordinaire!