Family Camp Fun

Maren:
This last week we got to go on a special camping trip with Nonna and Nonno.  Their church, Table Rock Fellowship, has an annual camp out up at Howard Prairie Lake and we got to go.  Nonna and Nonno loaded up their RV and we headed out of town.  Mommy came up and met us after work on Friday evening.  Unfortunately daddy was on a river trip and couldn't come.
By the time we got there, there were already a bunch of people there.  It didn't take me long to make some friends and start playing.  Joy and Lilly were just a bit older than me but I didn't mind.  We got to do lots of fun activities, like decorate bird houses, make our own t-shirts with fabric paint and squirt guns, and play in the lake.  It was the first time I had really been swimming in a lake and I had lots of fun.  It was a bit intimidating without my goggles but I still managed.  Mommy even got in and swam with me one of the days and we had lots of fun playing together.
The very last night of camp we sat around the camp fire and sang a bunch of really fun songs.  All of the kiddos got to do a little parade to show off our cool crafts that we made.

Maddox:
Family camp was a blast!  It was a bit of a shuffle for all of us sleeping in Nonna and Nonno's RV but we made it happen.  Because my sister was sleeping right next to me I really didn't want to fall asleep and would lay awake for a long time talking.
I really enjoyed all of the activities and had lots of fun playing in the lake.  Mommy brought my favorite dump truck and tractor and I sat right of the edge of the water and played for hours.  Sister was really good about letting me tag along with her and her new friends.  She did her best to include me in everything and to help me with the crafts.  I really liked decorating my own bird house and making the t-shirts with squirt guns. 

Gearing up for summer with loads of fun!

Maren:
I am still in horse lessons, though I will probably miss a few weeks because of all of our summer festivities that are coming up.  I am doing really well and really advancing in my skills.  The other day I even cantored solo!  My Nonna and Nonno were even there to watch me that day!  I was so proud of myself!  Mrs. Sonja has also been setting up some simple obstacles for me to work through so I can continue to develop.  I am really enjoying the challenge.
Much to my delight, mommy brought Kit-Kat home to visit with us for the last few weekends!  I love having her around and spend lots of time snuggling with her, carrying her around like a baby and even giving her rides in my stroller.  I think she likes being with us a lot and loves all the attention she is getting from me. 
We had our first big river outing with Maddox the other day.  Mommy and daddy have been wanting to get him on the river, so for Father's Day we loaded up the boat and did a nice short float.  It was a beautiful day and I really wanted to swim in the river.  I kept trying to get in, but never really had the courage.  Then, right at the end of the trip I was hanging over the edge of the boat and slipped!  When I hit that freezing cold water (the river is still getting a lot of mountain run off and is pretty darn cold) I kinda freaked out!  I screamed "meaty murder" until mommy pulled me back in.  I was done after that and just wanted to curl up on the front of the boat in a dry towel.
With summer coming and good weather with it we have had lots of fun times with friends and family.  We have been really lucky and have gotten to see Jace and Bella a few time in the last week... once at their house and once at ours!  It is always really fun to hang out with them. 

Maddox:
Summer is just about here but we still have been having some spring type weather.  The other day it was really cold and rainy outside and mommy needed to get some chores done around the house.  So, to keep us busy while she was working, she built a really cool fort for us in the living room. She pulled some chairs in, grabbed a few blankets and our pop up tents and before you knew it, we had a whole city to play in.  Sissy and I had a great time and were busy in there for a good couple of hours! 
As sissy mentioned, we had our first big river outing where I got to go along.  Mommy and daddy planned a short little trip with just a few small riffles so that I could be sure to have a fun time.  When we were loading up to get on the river mommy called me over so she could put sun block on me.  I asked her, very seriously.... "Mommy, does sun scream sting?"  To which she replied "No".  My simple response to that... "Oh.  Puhfect!".  I really enjoyed the raft trip, though I kept asking to go back to shore so I could play in the sand with my tractor.
Daddy worked on Fathers Day but we spent the day with Nonna and Nonno to celebrate.  It was super hot that day and we made our first outing to the water park near their house.  I tripped and fell right when we got there and skinned my knee up pretty bad.  It took me a while to come out of that but when I did, mommy had to drag me out of the water to get me home!  I had a blast and had to coax my sister back in with me!