Camping and some

We went camping back in October.  Yes you can do that in Virginia.  We went with our friends the Mellors.  We headed up old Shenandoah National Park on a Friday afternoon.  I thought growing up I was brave and somehow the thought of bears never scared me.  Then I learned that where I used to camp, there aren't bears, but here in the Shenandoah there are lotssss.  People say, "but they are just cute little black bears".  If I only had to run and defend myself I wouldn't mind but I have to drag children along with me and they would slow me down.  So I almost bought a bear horn, but instead I did extensive research so I knew how to handle all scenarios.  With that said, we were driving up Friday afternoon and there on the side of the road was a happy little black bear just hanging out.  For better or worse, I worked past my bear fear and we camped anyway.  We literally camped in a cloud.  It was super foggy that day and you could't see about twenty feet in front of you. (this didn't help my bear fears either).  It was a weird haze, but it was warm and we still had lots of fun.  It was probably my crazy pregnancy cravings (I am starving in the first trimester) but I packed and planned tons of gourmet meals for us to eat in the short 24 hours we would be there.  So mostly I cooked, the kids ate, and Logan chopped wood and tended to the fire so I could cook.  Darn pregnant ladies.  The other thing that was a bit terrifying was the GIANT catface spiders that would come out at night.  I have never seen these in Virginia and didn't know this was a thing, but once it got dark, they started hanging out from the trees and suddenly one was in your face.  It was as terrifying as the bears.  I am sounding like a wuss here, and maybe I have turned soft, but these spiders were big and juicy and would come out of no where.  Fog, bears, spiders, when I retell the story it sounds like a terrible trip.  But like I said, we had fun.  

Char, Jack and Lincoln snacking away.

Brett and Logan doing their man duties.

Eating food.  Breakfast burritos I think.

Packing up to go home.

Misty misty.

This was dad's fault.  Poor Char.  Her face takes such a beating.  He was carrying her through the trees to look for woods and a branch got her.  

Cobbler.

Char finally out.

Jack snoozing.

Out for a walk around campus.

I think this is a statue of Jefferson.

Searching for bugs under rocks.

We convinced the Guynns and Bylunds to have a tennis tournament with us.  I knew we were bad, but man are we bad.  We lost.  Guynns won.  Still had fun.

Steve and Jenni won.  Our kids were troopers to let us play.

Buds.

This girl has a little technology problem.