Camping at Currant Creek!

On July 27 we headed out on the long awaited and anxiously anticipated annual camping trip. Jonathan worked his magic and actually packed all the paraphernalia it takes to go camping with a family of 8 for 3 days. As we drove out of the driveway we still were undecided on our camping location. We headed up Provo canyon and somewhere along the way decided to try Currant Creek (a campground we had seen rated highly online). It is located just East of Heber and North of Strawberry Reservoir. We pulled off the paved road and ventured off road for close to an hour on a very bumpy road. Our brains were all a bit joggled by the time we arrived. We pulled into the campsites and found plenty to choose from. We settled on one that had a nice veiw of the lake through the pine and aspen trees and was right across the road from a great pioneer park also surrounded by trees. It took just under 3 hours to make our little campsite feel like home. The kids were begging to get wet so we headed down to the lake. There were very few other campers and we felt like we had our own private shore (mostly rocks with a little sand here and there.) The water was cold but refreshing and the kids had a great time splashing and trying to stay untangled from the lakeweed (as opposed to seaweed).

After a dinner of taco salad and homemade cookies we headed out for a little evening hike. There was a one mile hike up through the Aspen trees. It looped around the top of the mountain and gave a great view of the dam and lake. The sun was just setting as we arrived back at camp. We sat around the campfire for a while and then called it a day. The first night camping is always interesting. We didn't sleep a whole lot between kids that were cold, a baby who wouldn't sleep, sore legs, headaches, and kids rolling on top of each other. Finally about 4am everyone fell into a deep sleep which only lasted 3 hours but at least it was something. We broke in our new campstove that morning with eggs, sausage, and hashbrowns. That morning we took another little hike around to the top of the dam at the head of the lake and the kids played on the playground that included a log home and a covered wagon. They have such great imaginations. There were no other campers in sight so they had the whole place to play on their own. We spent all afternoon at the lake trying out our borrowed blow up kayak, dodging or catching fish (depending on the child), and skipping rocks. It was perfect! We had a weenie roast and smores that night and fully saturated our clothing and tent in the smell of camp smoke. We did some major rearranging of sleeping conditions that night and we all got a lot more rest. Being extra tired helped too!

The next morning the kids discovered pioneer sidewalk chalk. They would burn the ends of their sticks then write and draw on the concrete pad the picnic table was on. It came off with water and they loved it. We took one last dip in the lake where Emily made a friend with a leech and Hunter spotted a water snake that all the kids took turns holding (much braver than their mother). We packed up and headed home with dirty clothes, smelly hair, sunburned cheeks and wonderful memories!

Enough of the babbles now for the blessings: We have been greatly blessed this summer. We feel as though angels have been watching over our children especially Alyssa. She locked herself in a hot car, ran away from us at the city fireworks show, tried taking a solo stroll around the block, and fell inches from the firepit. Since we can't lock the girl in a room we are thankful for angels and promptings of the Spirit