It turned out to be a Mother/Daughter camp-out since Derek had to stay home and work. We were sad that Daddy wasn't going to be able to come, but also knew this would be a great opportunity for us girls to spend some quality time together in the great outdoors. And a time to be adventurous!
The Foote's definitely know how to camp so they had everything you could possibly need, even a shower. We were definitely in good hands. They found us a campsite 2 miles south from the Sand Dunes Park at a place called the "Oasis Campground." It was very nice the only thing we had to be careful of was the cactus and being in bear country. I'm always terrified of coming face to face with a bear while camping, but our friends reassured me that we were going to be OKAY, more than once. :) And we never saw a bear all weekend.
Camille can make some yummy chicken fajitas and Andrew took care of our campfires. We had Smores of course and talked around the campfire each night. The girls had a ball playing in the water and of course in the sand. It was fun to roll down the sand dunes. Andrew had the great idea to bury Camille in the sand. I of course had to help. :) I wish I had pictures.
One afternoon we took the girls to the Visitor Center and they were having Ranger Kid's Day. They had different learning centers with different activities at each center. They had the chance to make bookmarks and decorate them with stamps and Cassidy of course had to make an extra one to give to her daddy. They had the chance to use binoculars and go on a hunt to find the animal pictures that were hiding around the room, touch different animal furs and learn about the different animals, put puzzles together, etc. As they completed each activity they would get a stamp on their cards so they could earn a Ranger T-shirt after completing 6 activities. It was fun and Camille and I were excited for the girls to earn their shirts. Which they did.
Cassidy at home wearing her Ranger shirt
Back at the campsite one night they were having all you can eat ice cream. So of course we had to go! They also had a little playground and some plane tires for the kids to play on while we ate our ice cream. We had great weather and it never poured on us, but one day was extra windy! Andrew even saw one of our fellow campers tent fly in the air. Unfortunately, it was so windy we weren't able to play at the sand dunes but instead we watched movies, took a nice restful nap, and hung around the camp site and swung on the hammock.
It was nice to relax all weekend and to be out in the fresh air. Cassidy was a trooper and an awesome camper. She slept through the nights with no problem. I really enjoyed cuddling with my girl and having the time to just sit and talk together in our tent. We will have to go back for sure, and maybe Cassidy will be old enough to challenge the sand dunes and hike up to the top. Or at least take turns with some friends while we take turns watching the kiddos. One day I will climb the top. :)
Unfortunately, I have no pictures of our adventurous weekend because my camera was having some major issues. But here are some pictures I got off the park's website that gives you an idea of what our fun looked like.
It was like being at a beach:
Rolling down the Sand Dunes:
Someday, hiking to the top:
