Happy Campers

We took our first family Camping trip this weekend.  Derek needed to go camping in order to fulfill all the requirements he will need to get his arrow of light.  So I adopted the nickname of Cristel Handly and planned, organized and packed the truck for our 3 day and 3 night trip for 5.  I was even awesome enough to put on the car top carrier, fill it and secure it in the 110 degree heat.  Friday afternoon the boys and I locked up the house and headed East to pick up Anthony from work.  We continued  up the Beeline Highway toward Payson. 

About 6 pm we ended up at our camp site and got right to work.  Anthony and the boys set up the tent and I unloaded the rest of the gear.  Next order of business was the camp fire.  Although we ate dinner early in Payson, the boys wanted to roast hot dogs and marshmallows.  Soon enough we were all exhausted and headed to the tent for bed.  Unfortunately, the elk in the forest were looking for a hot date and telling us all about it all night long.

The rest of the weekend the boys played in the dirt,

Anthony chopped a lot of wood and I just enjoyed being with my boys. 

We also went on a few hikes and spent some time at the lakes. 

Carsen was the lucky duck and caught a trout and everyone else at the lake was jealous. 

The boys all caught a bunch of crayfish.  We took all our spoils back to camp and cooked them up. 

Derek gutted his first fish and I almost puked taking the pictures.

Carsen was sure he was going to eat his trout, but after 1 bite he spit it right back out and wiped his tongue clean.  Derek and Jake on the other hand loved the crayfish and ate them for dinner both nights.

The boys were a little bit chilly in the wee hours of the morning, but they are really looking forward to our next trip.  During one adventure Carsen said, " I never knew nature could be so fun!"