We went camping and I got to go tubing through river rapids. I had so much fun!

He said

When we originally booked this camping trip, we had the idea that we’d find out what cool weather camping was all about. The funny thing was the weather we got this weekend was actually warmer than some of our trips this summer. It was certainly an alright problem to have to deal with. And for all of the five families, nineteen people, and three dogs it was the perfect companion to our weekend together.

What started as us trying to orchestrate a camping weekend with our friends Leanne & Chris and our kids quickly ballooned with the invite to our other friends Kelli & Bill, and their kids and then two other friends of Leanne’s and the group spanned five sites and nineteen people. We were excited to finally camp with our friends Leanne & Chris as they were the reason we looked for the Apex Nano based on the one they got and all the research Leanne did about them. Of all the years we’ve known them, and both loving camping so much, surprisingly we have never camped with them. But, this was also our first time going part of such a large group too.

We were the first to arrive at the campground in the afternoon Friday and quickly got setup. Within a few hours of that the rest of the families all started to art five. The last – Kelli & Bill – weren’t due until the next morning. Quickly we got the community sites set up and the fire pit going that pretty much ran non stop the entire weekend. Once we had dinner out of the way we got into relaxing around the fire and had a perfect evening together with many, many laughs. We got to bed a little later than we should have but there were no alarm clocks to worry about the next day.

The campground was a mixture of permanent, seasonal sites and then transient sites. Normally this isn’t the kind of campground we might uncover, but thankfully Leanne had been at this one earlier this summer and vouched that there was lots for kids and grownups to do alike and she wasn’t wrong by any stretch. The best part was the campground was situated on the Maitland River which made the perfect place with its crystal-clear, shallow water with rapids made the perfect place for you to float down on from the one of the campground to the other. And with the weather being what it was, it meant the kids could get in the water two of the days and have fun.

The best part of the weekend was that there were three other girls — each within a year or so of Emelia’s age for her to play with. Hannah, Chris & Leanne’s daughter Emelia is already good friends with, but two of Hannah’s besties – sisters – bookended Emelia in age and made for a perfect group for her to hang with pretty much all weekend long. She had playmates the entire weekend and for the first time this camp season, we started and finished a weekend without her telling us, “I’m bored.” She was pretty much on the go and we would see her in passing, at bed time or breakfast. It was pretty great to see her enjoy the freedom all weekend long.

We had perfect weather all weekend long with beautiful sun-filled warm days and the rain that did come was through the night and didn’t really put a wrinkle of any our plans. The kids, adults and animals all had plenty of fun and no one went hungry for sure! With the kids being able to occupy and fill their days, the parents got plenty of opportunity to relax and enjoy each other’s company without having to map out and plan the kids day. It was perfect.

Of course it all came to end quicker than we wanted, when this morning rolled around and we needed to pack up, but that also meant we were headed home to spend time with the Teeter family for our Thanksgiving.

She said

What a glorious weekend, it was everything Thanksgiving should be about. It was all about family and friends.

When we were in the middle of our first camping trip with our new trailer Leanne and I were texting back and forth about things we loved about our new trailers. They were also out for one of their first trips in their trailer. In these messages we agreed that it was far too long that we hadn’t camped together. Comparing weekends we agreed on Thanksgiving as a great weekend. John and I knew this new trailer could handle a cold weather weekend camp trip we decided in July that we were going to head camping together for the long weekend.

With the weekend decided and a location we had everything in order. As we moved through the summer we added to the group and by the time we had the weekend plans finazlied we had grown to 5 families, 19 people, 10 adults, 9 kids and 3 dogs. Once we had the location set, we started to work on the planning. We decided that nothing would be more perfect for a Thanksgiving celebration with friends than a big potluck dinner.

All weekend we ate amazing food, had lots drinks, laughs and built a full weekend of memories. The kids had a great time from the time they arrived to the last good bye. The weekend was a perfect mixed bag of weather. We had perfect sunshine and warmth in the day and the rain held off until the evenings, temps were perfect even with the rain that you could sleep with the windows open and enjoy the breeze and sounds of being in the trees.

Even with a full weekend we were not done. The weekend started surrounded by friends and ended surrounded by family. We left the campsite and got home in time to unpack our trailer and get ready to head off Helen and Doug’s for Thanksgiving as well as a celebration for Zoe’s 1st Birthday as well as Andrew’s 19th. Once again we were reminded exactly what we are grateful for, family and friends.

This weekend was once again a reminder how amazingly lucky we are, we have amazing friends, new friends and amazing family. Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Hope you spent your weekend with the ones you love.