Family Campout

Chad and I have been talking about going camping ever since we moved to Globe 2-1/2 years ago, but we never made it happen. We had heard that there were nice places to camp nearby, but we didn't know exactly where. And then there was the issue of weather and timing--too hot in the summer, too cold come fall.

Finally, I did some research on the internet, and found the Pinal Peak campgrounds. Globe sits in the shadows of the beautiful Pinal Mountains (photo to the right is the view of Globe from the mountains), and after driving about an hour on a windy dirt road through the mountains, we came to the campgrounds, which are at about 7500 ft elevation. It was beautiful up there--Ponderosa pines and oak trees (yes--oak trees!) provided shade until the sun went down. Then it got cold! I am not used to needing to pack cold-weather clothing, and unfortunately we made it up there with no sweatshirt for Bree or socks for Mason. So I dressed Mason in his teddy-bear sleeper right away, and we tried to make Bree wear Chad's huge fleece, but she preferred to freeze. Luckily we brought firewood, and there were piles of firewood everywhere up there, so we managed to keep warm.

I was worried that we wouldn't get any sleep, but after Bree whined for at least 30 minutes (Mason had no trouble falling asleep in his playpen), we finally slept with only one early morning trip to the potty (Bree's little potty came in very handy!). The kids loved the campfire, we roasted hot dogs and had s'mores, and since Jiffy Pop is impossible to find in Globe, I made popcorn in a pan on our camp stove (which, incidentally, I have deemed decrepit and unsafe).

So, all in all, our first family campout was a success--delicious food, beautiful surroundings (by the way, we only saw one other person on that entire mountain!), comfortable sleep arrangements (we knew that 8-man tent would come in handy some day!). This was just the first of what we hope will be a yearly family tradition.

P.S.: I wish I had more/better pics, but my camera died after the first few shots! *tear*