Camping in Camden

Two weeks ago we went camping in Camden with our good friends the Smiths. Alison and Payson go to daycare together and are good buddies, so they were both very excited about the trip. We were excited to spend time with the Smiths, as both families have been extremely busy with other activites this summer and we've missed hanging out!

We had a great weekend, despite a little rain Saturday morning and Alison getting a little sick Saturday evening. Here are some pictures!

After dodging the morning rain, we headed down to the quaint village area in Camden. The girls were pretty goofy, jumping up and down on this bench! They loved seeing the big boats, doggies, ducks, and an open lobster tank.

What good buddies. Could they be any cuter?

A family shot down by the schooners.

The best seat for a tour!

The weather cleared so that after lunch we were able to take in the spectacular view atop Mount Battie. As you can see, it's gorgeous! You can drive right up to the top.

The girls enjoyed climbing to the top of the "castle" and looking out (and scaring me half to death due to the open, narrow, winding staircase).

Payson was in a pretty silly mood back at the campground that night. She LOVED camping, but didn't sleep all that well in the tent. I think she woke up the entire campground the second night... oops. A particular highlight for the girls was jumping up and down on our air mattress!

Here's our tent! It's pretty roomy - a 6 man tent with a "vestibule" (what the heck to you call it when it's attached to a tent? A porch?). We bought it last year after we realized our 4 man tent would ironically not accomodate 3 of us (one in a portable crib!). We don't exactly rough it, but hey, we're still camping!

The next morning the Smiths left right after breakfast because poor little Alison wasn't feeling well at all. After packing up our campsite, we went on a hike to check out more of the views in the area.

The hike was pretty steep and rocky! Payson's getting fairly big and heavy to lug in the backpack, but both she and Matt did a great job. Here's the "big rock!" we stopped by for a little breather.

One angle of the view from our destination - Adam's Lookout. Those are islands in the distance. It was breathtaking.

Payson helped Matt balance across the bridge on our way back. I love this shot!

After our hike we refueled with lunch atop Mt. Battie. What a great place for a picnic! Payson ate hummus by the handful; pretty funny (& messy!).

It was a great trip and we can't wait to do more camping in the future! For more pictures, check out the Smith's blog by clicking here.

We had a pretty relaxing weekend last weekend. Matt and I had our first night away from Payson on Saturday night and really enjoyed our time together, and Payson had a blast at Mimi & Papa's. Thanks for watching her, guys! Unfortunately I had a terrible cold, but we still managed to have a relaxing, revitalizing time.

Here's a cute picture of our walk/talking Zoe swimming Saturday morning.

I am now officially back up-to-date! Thanks for bearing with me. I'll do my best to keep it up. We are looking forward to being productive around the house and also having some fun this Labor Day weekend - I hope you enjoy yours as well!

As a side note, my good friend Sari and her world class team, Team Nike, is competing in an adventure race in China this week. If you're interested in keeping tabs on her crazy athletic feats, check out her website.