Camping for Alyssa's birthday

As a kid, we always went camping with my dad and cousins. I'm not talking "trailer" camping... if you can even call that camping... I'm talking good, old fashioned camping in tents. I think it's the tents that made it so fun. Setting them up, telling stories all night long, getting dirty and EVERYTHING smelling like camp fire. As I sit and write this post, I still smell like campfire. Don't worry I'll shower soon, but it reminds me of all the fun I had as a kiddo and for that matter this weekend.

We went camping for my little sister Alyssa's 13th birthday. (Before I talk about the camping trip, let me just mention that it's hard to believe that our little Lissaroo is a TEENAGER! Where has the time gone?) Like when we were kids, we decided to camp the good old fashioned way. The kids (Alyssa, Chinalyn and Tyler) even decided to ditch their tent and camp "under the stars" instead. The days at the coast were beautiful, but the nights were COLD. I could barely handle it in the tent so I give them credit for really roughing it (roughing it is just not as much fun when you have a baby and you're all grown up). We all had fun riding bikes, shopping in Pismo and visiting with family. My cousin Lisa and her fiance' Chris drove over and it was great to hang out and catch up with them. Christy's crew came up on Saturday night and Brogan is used to the trailer, so he had ROUGH night trying to adjust to tent living. Jed finally went into the car and slept with him. Chris brought fish he had caught during the week and Josie bought some in Avila... and we had an incredible dinner of fish and potatoes. Josie just seasoned them, wrapped them in foil and popped them on the grill. She definitely knows how to cook! It was a great time to kick back, relax and be thankful to have family that lives nearby.

Happy Birthday Auntie Alyssa!