Camping 2013

 Last month we decided to take a (very) spontaneous camping trip. We borrowed pretty much all of the camping supplies from family members, packed some tin foil dinners and snacks, loaded up every blanket we owned and headed out to Mary Jane Thurston State Park for some quality family time. We had a blast! Trevor was so happy. He thought the tent, the fire, the camping chairs, the flashlights, etc were the all the greatest things ever.

Trevor and I set up the tent while Ben started the fire. All the wood around us was soaking wet. It took forever to finally get a good fire going. And really, the only reason we had a fire at all is that some old guy came over and doused our wet, smoking wood with lighter fluid. Thank goodness. We finally ate dinner around 9:00. Late, but delicious.

We bundled up and headed to bed. Trevor wanted nothing to do with the pack and play, so we let him lay in bed with us and watched The Incredibles, hoping he would just fall asleep. No luck. Ben and I both fell asleep though. I woke up to the credits at the end of the movie and closed the computer and Trevor was very upset at me for turning it off. Thankfully I just rocked him for a few minutes and he passed out. Turns out he is a pretty active sleeper. He was punching and kicking me all night long. He also does not like to sleep with blankets on him, which normally isn't a problem, but when it gets down to about 35 degrees, it's not the best. Anyway, none of us really slept very well, but we still had a good time.

We got up around seven the next morning and ate cookies and Reeses for breakfast because I forgot to pack half of breakfast and we didn't want to deal with the fire again. We drove home, unpacked, threw in a load of laundry and took a fantastic nap. This was our first family camping trip, and we loved it. We will definitely be doing it again, though next time we'll give ourselves a little more time to prepare, and we'll pick a night that is not so miserably cold. All in all though, we had an awesome time and it was so much fun to hang out, just the three of us.

Helping set up the tent

Finally starting our tin foil dinners at about 8:00

 

 

Watching a movie to "help us fall asleep"

 

Reeses for breakfast

Awesome weekend

Well this weekend was awesome. No complaints whatsoever. Let's start with Friday:

After a long day with school, work and a test that I did pretty badly on, Becca picked me up and we went to a pretty good Barbecue place called Good Wood. It's near University mall. I got beef brisket, and Beck got pulled pork. The food was fantastic, but one of the main highlights was their BBQ sauce. It was SO good! And the best part is they have bottles of it at your table. By the end of our meal, the once full bottle was more than half gone. Also, Becca told them it was my birthday (which wasn't for another two days but who's counting?) and they gave us an enormous brownie sundae with whipped cream, caramel, chocolate sauce, and a cherry on top. It was dee-lish.

Then we went to Ruth and Dan's house (sister and bro-in-law), and visited with them, as well as my Mom who is in town. It was really fun to hang out with them, chat a little bit, and then watch a movie.

Then on Saturday:

I started by playing a good game of Ultimate Frisbee. It was super fun, and I had some plays that would have made the ESPN highlight reel if ultimate frisbee mattered. Afterward, Becca and I met up with my mom and we went to Rodizio grill (it's like Tucanos) to celebrate my birthday (a day early, but I'm not complaining). It was really great to spend some time with my mom, and to have Becca there as well. And the food was great to boot. Then, after we finished eating, we got down to the real treat of the day: football.

Now, I'm not sure if some people knew it was my birthday, but Saturday was pretty darn awesome. I was watching several games throughout the day, like Michigan State vs. Nebraska, Michigan vs Purdue, Illinois vs Penn State... But the two games I was really interested in were Georgia vs. Florida, and Ohio State vs. Wisconsin.

I don't generally root for anyone in the SEC. I hate most of them. But Georgia? I've always hated them much less than most, and then I married a Georgia fan. So, I've read a lot about them, I like Mark Richt more than other coaches (I can't Spurrier or Chizik.), and I enjoy watching them quite a bit. I've grown to like Georgia quite a bit, and I think Uga is pretty cool. That, and I've always hated Florida, so I was eager to watch the game. Georgia played a pretty sloppy game to be honest. But it was incredible to watch. I'm not sure if anyone reading this watched the game, but the whole game was worth it to watch 2 plays on fourth down in the opponents field. Instead of going for a field goal, they went for the conversion. And both times, they didn't get the conversion. Instead, they scored. Those were two of the nuttiest plays I've ever seen, and I was thrilled to see Richt pull in a win for the Bulldogs.

Side note: This is the first time the Gators have lost 4 straight since 1988. It makes me so happy I want to cry.

However, anyone who knows me, knows I love Ohio State. I feel like I'm writing way too much about football, so I'll keep this one shorter. Here's the skinny: Ohio State has had a rough season, despite having all sorts of talent. Wisconsin was #12 and has the most balanced offensive attack in the nation (up until last week they were averaging over 250 yards in rushing and passing per game). OSU was a huge underdog, and they played a great game, and beat Wisconsin. OSU was down 29-26 with 1:18 to go before the game ended. They got the ball, returned it 42 yards, and a few plays later, landed a 40 yard pass to win it. It was amazing, and I was jumping and screaming like mad! Go Bucks!

On to Sunday:

My birthday! 24 is a cool age, I feel. It's kind of like turning 17. Nothing special happens, but it's better than being 16. I woke up to breakfast in bed, courtesy of the greatest wife in the world. Breakfast burritos and orange juice. The unbeatable combination. She knows me so well...

Then we went to Church, and came home and she gave me my presents! I was excited, but I felt bad because I gave her nothing to work with. I didn't really want anything, but she managed to get me some good stuff! I got a Georgia T-shirt, some sweet mint gum, a homemade coupon book, a Calvin & Hobbes book, and a red pen to mark my scriptures, among other things. She really did a great job, and I was thrilled with each gift she got me. Becca is so great.

Then we went over to Ruth and Dan's again where we spent a good bit of the night, and they gave Beck and me and early Christmas present (no joke. It was made very clear to me that this was not a birthday present, but our christmas present). It was a new camera! There is a story behind that, too... but maybe I'll post it later.

The camera is awesome! So we've been taking more pictures. I realize the irony that there aren't any pictures on this post. But, in the future there sure as heck will be! The camera is waterproof, shock proof, and takes HD video and all that jazz. It makes Beck and me look like pro photographers despite not having any idea what we're doing.

In the end, I know this post seems super long, but the past few days have been so great! I feel super lucky, and very blessed, not only for the great events that happened, but that I got to have them all with my wife. She makes even the greatest events more fun and just overall much better. Life is great. There are more things happening, so I'm sure there will be another post on here shortly.

I'm 24. Not a bad start, I'd say.