August long

With the way the $ things are going I had wondered if we were going to be able to go on our annual August long family camping trip.  Not being able to spend time with the family would have been a big loss. The cabin was prepaid. The groceries were pretty much already bought. It really was a matter of just the gas getting there, so we pulled from here and there to make it happen..

I am glad we did. We have been doing this trip for a long while. I found it interesting to read my past entries for August long to see how our family has grown since then. Many of the nieces and nephews have a significant other now, and there are 5 little ones, with a surprise announcement that my niece is expecting twins in January.

32 of 34 of us were there for this August long.

DS2 had one of the little ones in awe because he is an expert in wood chopping and fire building. The little guy just sat on a chair and watched, then ran with the chopped  logs to the pile.

This was the first time our little family brought an extra. DS1 brought his girlfriend to meet the family. She had met a few of them before, but there were a lot of new faces for her. The little ones loved her. One of the nephews attached himself to DS1 and one of the nieces attached herself to his gf. It was amusing to watch them wander about with kids in tow most of the time. Good birth control :-)  She did very well and got to meet the cousins who are in the city at the same University she is going to.

It was a wonderful time of fresh air and sunshine, loons calling and waves moving against the shore, and campfires. The kids had a great time on their uncles' pontoon boats and hanging out together. We ate too much and had a great time playing Kaiser.

The more our family grows, the more I realize how challenging it is to get that many of us together, and I realize how lucky we are to have my parents still with us.

I am grateful for my sisters and their lake toys, which give my kids a chance to play. 

We will freezer and pantry eat this week and syphon the camping gas $ from this week's groceries.

Now onto the pile of campfire scented laundry.