Family Nature Getaway

I have never really been camping before, so when my hubby suggested we take a trip to Shenandoah River State Park, my first thought was he was crazy, but I'm willing to try just about anything once.  I had no idea what to expect.  We live near a state park, and I love taking the kids there for a short hike, to play on the playground, or watch Robert fish.  However, I also love coming back to the comfort of my home where my big fluffy bed always awaits.  When Friday rolled around and it was time to leave, I thought of a million and one things I had to finish up:  answer student emails, pack my arts supplies (very slowly), pay a couple bills, and catch up on Facebook (very important).  I drug my feet until about noon, and realized I was running out of excuses for not being in the car and ready to go.  So, we grabbed the dog and babies and hit the open road.  We arrived at the cabin in the late afternoon/early evening, and "wow" is all I can say.  The views were spectacular!  We used to live in Charlottesville, so this was no big surprise, but it's been a long time since I've seen mountains.  It was the cabin that really had me concerned.  I'm not gonna lie, I'm pretty particular when it comes to where I'll stay when we travel.  Well, it turns out the cabins were just built this July, and were fully furnished with with everything you could ever need (except a tv and phone).  I was pleasantly surprised!  The kitchen was fully equipped, there were fresh linens, toiletry items, rocking chairs on the wrap around deck, a picnic table, charcoal grill, and fire pit. 

   

I was so excited I could hardly contain myself!  I knew I could survive staying here the weekend.  Yes indeed!

We gave the kids a little project while we ("we" meaning Bob) brought everything into the cabin.  I unpacked the entire week's worth of groceries we brought (I must have been hungry when I packed), and then we took a little evening stroll.

The views were absolutely breath-taking!  There were mountains off in the distance, and the Shenandoah River was just down the hillside from our cabin.

 

It wouldn't be a camping trip (I can only imagine) without roasting marshmallows and making s'mores! 
 

After we put the kids to bed, Robert built a fire in the pit and we roasted a few more marshmallows and talked until the early morning hours.

The kids were up at 7am ready to start the day!  It was so beautiful and misty outside that I didn't even care that I had hardly slept.

After breakfast, we started the day with a hike down the Bluebell Trail.  We saw lots of birds, but not a lot of other wildlife, shewww! 

The trail snakes along the river, so we were able to stick our feet in the water.  It was still a little too cold to jump right in just yet.

We decided to "rough it" and roast hot dogs.  I think the kids have seen hot dogs at their Nana's house, but there was no way Maddie was going to actually eat one.  Lily took a big bite to give it a try, but no...

Here's the view from Cullers Overlook in the park.

  Since the river was just a short walk, we suited up the kids to go wading.  The water was amazingly shallow and calm, so the kids had a great time.

 

Apparently wading and fishing is exhausting work.  Robert and the kids took a little nap, while I did a little art journaling.  Awesome!!  A life I could get used to:)

Okay, so Maddie didn't take a nap...

but, Lily did.  Robert woke up, handed over my baby, and caught a crayfish  to entertain Maddie.

I'm not sure why he thought it would entertain me?  Though, it does look tasty.  I wonder if he has about a dozen more friends?!

We packed up a groggy Lily, and were headed up the riverbank, when we met this lovely couple who were passing by on horseback.

They were so very nice.  They let each of the girls sit in the saddle, and pretend to be cowgirls!  They told us about a local restaurant called 3 Brothers Bugers, which serves amazing chili cheese fry burgers (doesn't that just sound sinful?!), and a custard shop called Spelunker's.  No one went hungry that night!

In fear of making this the longest blog post in history, I'm going to stop here.  You're going to have to tune in tomorrow to hear about the rest of our trip. xoxo

Comments

[Diane O.]

I LOVE s'mores! Looks like you had a great time, thanks for sharing the "adventure". I'll have to keep that area in mind should hubby and I need a little getaway.

[Melissa Samuels]

It was awesome, Diane! You should definitely check it out.