camping at the beach

last week we decided that it wasn't too late to squeeze in a mini camping trip before summer ended. i'm so glad we did too! the day before we left it was in the 90's, but we returned to cool and cloudy weather. it even rained last night. it seems as though summer really is over for the pacific northwest.

this was gigi's first visit to the beach. she liked it initially, but then got scared. the ocean is a pretty overwhelming thing.

i forgot my wide angle lens, so this iphone photo is the only one we have of our campsite. bernie, our westfalia, did a great job keeping us warm. i love not sleeping in a tent. my husband is still getting the water and propane sorted out in bernie and i look forward to cooking with our VW Camper Cookbook!

until then (and really always and forever) i love my cast iron pan.

bacon cheese burgers and a hobo pack of carrots cooked with butter and thyme.

not being seasoned campers, we totally forgot s'mores. and hot cocoa. next time!! but the fire was warm and wonderful.

camping with a little one was great, except for the sleeping part. or really i should say the not-sleeping part in the middle of the night (3:30-5 ugh...). but lessons were learned that will help avoid this next time.  thank goodness we had some caffeinated warmth from this charming pot in the morning. coffee for vincent and tea for me. so needed.

gratuitous photo of curls.

these flowers were in clusters around our campsite. we took a walk around the campground and saw a wild, yet fairly tame, bunny munching on some grass, and made note of another campsite that had a hollowed out tree in it. perfect for a fairy house! next year i think we'll be returning.

and what could make a camping trip even better? coming home to find treasures! my signed copy of soulemama's The Rhythm of Family and the beginnings of my butterprint pyrex collection had arrived in our absence.

even though it was just an overnight trip, it was long enough to feel like we had gotten away from our regular lives. sometimes you just need a little reset in nature with your family.