Saragh, Braidon and Anna were so excited about the camping trip that they just couldn't stand it!
Oliver and the girls and I shared the big tent and the boys got to have their own tent. They were very excited about this and it ended up working really well.
Our campground was right down the road from where the Platte River empties into Lake Michigan. After dinner on Friday, we went down to the beach to do some exploring and rock collecting. We go there right as the sun started setting and we enjoyed an incredibly beautiful show.
We went on a dune climb on Saturday morning and it started raining as soon as we got out of our car! Luckily, during the hike, it was just a drizzle. The scenery was awesome because of the rain, though and we saw gorgeous views of the mist coming off the hills and trees.
The kids LOVED the trip down the dune! They spent about an hour going up and down and rolling and sliding. It was great!
We went to the Maritime museum later in the afternoon and they gave a demonstration of how the boat patrols in the are used to do rescues from shipwrecks. It is a very involved process and I am sure the patrols were glad when they figured out faster and more efficient rescues!
We went back to the lake after the Maritime museum (they have a path that leads right to a little beach!) and the kids had a great time throwing rocks, collecting rocks and the girls even had a little beach tea party with rocks and driftwood.
This was our first camping trip as a family and Oliver and I were a little apprehensive about how it would go. I have to say that, in spite of the rain, we had a great time and have actually changed our future vacation plans to include more camping!
