Our hiking adventure

Today was the very first day in a long time that Eldon wasn't either working a 12 hour shift, helping my dad get ready for a new batch of chickens, or spending 3 hours on the road so it was like vacation! The weather was around 60* and cloudy so we decided we had better take our chance and hike before it gets so hot. We are staying at the Lake Brownwood State Park and were thrilled to discover that they have Jr Ranger backpacks and you can loan one for a day. They have binoculars, magnifying glass, sketch book, journal, compass, and loads of educational books about wildflowers, wildlife, trees, and birds. So we went to the ranger station to pick one up and they insisted on giving us three.  

Our little Adventurers 

Yeah, she dresses herself.

Isn't she cute though?!

Hiking along the lake shore

One of the many structures built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930's during the Depression, using native rocks and timber. 

Anthill!

Most of our trails looked like this

It was so fun to stroll leisurely along and look at anything we pleased for however long we wanted. When I think of hiking my mind goes back to my youth when I loved to socialize so I would go hiking with my very athletic friends. I am not athletic and would huff and puff up the mountains of Colorado then vow to never go again.  Somehow though, I couldn't stay away from these adventures. You know who you are and I still love you :) . No, this was nothing that stressful. I will add though, my 4 and 6 year old can run circles around me. But in my defense, I was packing an extra 20 pounds on my back.

We talked about how we never considering doing this like this when Makayla and Michael were little because you couldn't take a stroller on most trails. Times have sure changed for us. Stroller scmoller. Give us our carriers and we are happy as can be. We use a stroller so little it's barely worth having one anymore. I bought an Infantino Roam and love it but then Eldon started using it for Emily occasionally. I got the chance to buy an Ergo 360 at a good price and snatched it so that I had one to use for Ethan! And honestly, if could pick only 1, I'd pick the Infantino. It's a little hard for me to admit because Ergo's are like THE baby carrier hey.......I've got my reasons!

I know, Ethan's about to lose his head. He snoozed for a long time though!

So blessed to be raising our children together!

 We came home to our camper for lunch and naps then headed out in a different direction.

We came across multiple places like this, make by the CCC.

Lake Brownwood

The Grand Staircase is a sight to behold. It goes all the way down to the lake.

The very bottom

The lamps were made in the blacksmith shop which is now a lodge.

Spring!

This is the old blacksmith building. We climbed the stairs and went to the very top of that tower. Great view!

 I believe we will all sleep well tonight!

Picture post!

Pictures and tidbits of our life when we are staying at mom and dads. We have a lovely place with full hook-ups right outside their chicken house. Thankfully we almost never smell it, which is amazing.

Melissa got a hold of him. It's unreal what they manage to do with scraps from moms fabric store!

My sister came all the way from Colorado for 2 days and this is the best picture I took. But, we did enjoy her visit immensely.

She came loaded with gifts :) 

Michael loves to watch my mom in her store.

Emmy and Grandpa jumping on the trampoline

Just another day and another 18,000 eggs!

He thinks he needs to be with my dad or Eldon every time he sees them go past. In fact, he likes to hang out on the couch and look out the window. I'm convinced he watches for them and starts yelling when he sees them :)

Applebees. For the first time since we have children, we have free babysitters anytime we want and our children love it. We may or may not be taking advantage of it. 

See how much they love him? I don't know who has the most fun :)

Remember a few weeks ago when I was bragging about the awesome shed Eldon built? Here's his side of it.

His work bench. I'm so happy for him to have this awesome, organized space!

Makayla wants to be an artist when she grows up. 

Dad sold all his chickens so him and Eldon scooped poop for several days.

They weren't nearly done at this point. 

It's a dirty job, that's for sure!

But they both got to run their tractors so it's safe to say that they enjoyed it!

After it was cleaned out and being put back together.

Even got the girls to help :)

It took them all day to move the slats back. I wasn't jealous at all.

My farmer boy. He is 10.5 months and walking more then crawling. 

Bedtime stories. I don't read nearly this many every night.

Making sugar cookies for Valentine Day.

Have a blessed day!

Lake Brownwood

Eldon is 3 weeks into his 13 week contract with the Brownwood Regional Medical Center. He is enjoying it. I am happy that he is not hating it :) . He works 3 days one week and 4 the next, which means every other weekend he has off. We are planning to stay down here until his weekend off then take the camper the 3 hours back to dads. 

So far the only place we have stayed is Lake Brownwood State Park. We bought a state park pass and that has already saved us well over $100.  I have no desire to go anywhere else. The only downside is Eldon has 30 min to work. It also means I'm way out here with no vehicle most of the time. I'm not complaining about that either! Right now the park is very empty and I'm loving it. The place is huge so I doubt if I'll ever feel crowded. I like that the children can ride bike on the road and I don't worry about them getting hit. I like that there is no playground so they are content to stay near the camper. I like that the water is close enough to see and hear but far enough that unless I'm being really negligent, the children couldn't get there without me seeing.

A map of "our park"

They have a lot of these adorable stone cabins scattered throughout the park. I love how secluded they are.

We can see the fishing pier from our living room window. We've walked out there once but it freaks me out because my children think it's soooo fun to lean over and look at the water. 

Just gorgeous

Makayla wanted to take a picture of the lake.

Reading a story to her teddy bear. I wish I could freeze these moments.

Another naptime shot. Trying so hard to not sleep!

Another sunset

Silence is no longer golden.

Who needs toys when you have flip-flops anyhow?! I have not regretted the huge toy purge one bit. They haven't either!

In case you are wondering, yes, we still love each other and our camper. None of us would go back to a house if we had the option. Yes, maybe we are crazy but that's ok. At least, we are ok with it :) . It has it's challenges but we are learning to work through them. Instead of sending a naughty child to their room we have to actually deal with the problem. This has been a very good thing for all involved. My patience has been stretched (and honestly, broken a few times) to the max and is growing. I have 4 children who love to "help" cook and be underfoot. Eldon and I have both become more deliberate in giving them more responsibility and so far the messes have been minimal. So yes, it's different and it's not for everyone but we are happy and certain that we are in the center of  God's will.