Annual Camping Trip, Part 2

this post has been a long time coming
let's just say i had a hard time picking my favorite images
so excuse me for a moment while i photo vomit...

the end!

Annual Camping Trip, Part 1

at the very end of my last post, i mentioned that we'd gone camping the weekend before

what i didn't mention was just how stunning the drive up was

seriously, i have lived in BC for almost 16 years now (yeesh, that makes me sound old!)

and i have yet to get over how gorgeous this place is

seriously folks, if you live around here, get yourself outside sometime, 

you don't know what you're missing!

even if you don't live around here, i'm sure there's something the great outdoors in your area has to offer

after all, it's not called the great outdoors for nothing

so go discover it!

take pictures, if that's your thing

or just take it all in

make memories

get exercise

breath in the fresh air

gasp at how beautiful it all is - i definitely do!

p.s. stay tuned - more photos to come from the actual camping part of our trip + scenery from the way home

a smorgasbord of celebration

hi, friends!

today is a good day to celebrate

"why?" you ask?

well, for starters, it's friday, which is always a good reason to break out into a happy dance

but today is even more celebration worthy than your average friday

because it's also the Fourth of July, so without further ado:

                                                                                                                 

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY

                                                                                                                 

and although i hate the movie (sorry to all you Will Smith fans / that crazy husband of mine) 

i am proud to be American and very thankful for those who have fought to earn and keep our freedom

and as if all that isn't enough reason to celebrate, it's also my sweet little nephew's the three week birthday

he was born at 28 weeks and is a teeny tiny little person

i took this picture of him the day after he was born, he's since grown a bit and is doing well, 

but as with any preemie, any and all prayers are appreciated!

finally, here are some pictures i took en route to our camping trip last weekend
because smiling faces are a good way to end a celebratory blog post
(and yes, my child is wearing a jacket on her legs instead of her arms in some of these...life with two year olds!)

little explorers

it's been just over a month

since i last shared pictures from our camping trip earlier this year,

photo-processing time has been very limited lately,

but i've finally managed to pump out another "batch"

these were taken one afternoon after a super rainy morning

the sun broke through the clouds almost as quickly as the storm blew in

(which was surprisingly quick!)

so we "unleashed" the girls out in a field to explore the great outdoors

they loved the wide open spaces

and being able to pick up little "souvenirs" like sticks and rocks

and i loved seeing them making so many new discoveries 

...they looked so small up against the mountains and towering trees!

see if you can spot the couple frames

where one of the girls takes a break from being surrounded by this amazing landscape,

just to make a quick "phone call" on a rock she found 

sigh...they are suburbanites, after all!